Alpha
by lyrainthedark
Summary: Kagome mates Inuyasha...but Inuyasha was reluctant. Why? Pack politics...and his brother, who is Alpha. What this means may take all Kagome's vaunted purity and power to survive - and all Sesshomaru's patience. If they can come togetether, the world will forever be changed...
1. Chapter 1

Drabble Collection: Alpha

I

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

A: Abapical: a_t the lowest point_

Sesshomaru paced, back and forth, his fingers moving in agitated spasms. His body was not obeying him. Nothing refused his command!

When there was such an attempt, he had a ready means of handling it at his disposal.

However...in this instance, he could not take out his aggravation with violence. He wondered if his current predicament might not be punishment from the kami he had so _aggressively_ ignored. A snarl flashed across his face, the heavy layers of control twitching aside to show darkness, fury, lust. The snarl became a summoning growl.

"Jaken!"

One call was enough.

"My...my lord?"

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><p>AN: As requested by Tiajei, Alpha, now on Ff net! Please Review!


	2. Chapter 2

Drabble Collection: Alpha

II

Prompt From The Greek Challenge:

_Eros_

Kagome no longer traveled through time.

The commitment she had made by staying in the past was not lost on Inuyasha; he knew, though she said nothing, that she stayed for _him_.

Still, despite open feelings, Inuyasha still showed one reluctance that Kagome could not understand. He seemed, not unwilling, but _afraid_ to touch her. Confused, she hesitated, questioned Sango about the mating customs of youkai. What little she knew was no help. Finally, frustrated with caresses that flushed her with heat but went nowhere, Kagome made a choice - disregarded embarrassment, prepared for seduction.

She had waited long enough already.

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><p>AN: And one more chapter for now; more later!

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	3. Chapter 3

Drabble Collection: Alpha

III

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

B: Babeldom: _a confused sound of voices_

Sesshomaru stopped pacing, forced his hands to be still and kept his back turned. The strain in his voice warned his retainer that all was not well.

"My lord? You...summoned me?"

"A female."

"My...my lord?"

"A female!"

His words were a growl, murmurous, numerous in shadings of inflection, in promise. That growl was many voices: wildness, the Inu, lust on a rampage...heavier wildness.

"A f-female? Sesshomaru-sama - "

"Go!"

Jaken, wide-eyed, fell silent and bowed, scrambling backwards. There was a pulse in Sesshomaru's aura that gave him a terrible feeling.

Sesshomaru resumed his pacing; his claws regained their twitch.

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><p>AN: More, as promised!

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	4. Chapter 4

Drabble Collection: Alpha

IV

Prompt From The Greek Challenge:

_Tropaion _

Arriving for his evening visit, Inuyasha was surprised to find Miroku and Sango packed and the _women_ whispering excitedly about..._something_.

"Going somewhere, Miroku? I thought - "

"Sango and I wanted to ask you to watch the house for us. We're going to see a friend."

"Stay...?"

Sango winced at Inuyasha's blank expression. She stood, pulling Kagome with her.

"You stay, too, Kagome."

"But -"

"Thank you, both of you!"

Sango delivered the words quickly; Miroku retrieved their bags.

Inuyasha was obviously bewildered by their speedy departure. Miroku turned at the door, grinning.

"He's all yours, Kagome!"

* * *

><p>AN: Joy! Another Greek Challenge! _Tropaion _is to defeat. I thought Inuyasha certainly was defeated, even if by his own dumb :P Also he is quite doomed by Kagome's intentions...but then so is she.


	5. Chapter 5

Drabble Collection: Alpha

V

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

C: Cardroid: _heart-shaped_

They were useless – useless, all of them!

Females lay in a heap of pale skin, stained by the force of the _activities_ for which he had summoned them. Naked, every muscle restless, Sesshomaru strode to the door at the corner of his bedchamber, slid it open. In the garden beyond, moonlight slivered itself against sharp-edged leaves. He stared at them, tracing their shape with his eyes, a heart-shape that dripped shadows in the dark.

After a moment, he stiffened, stood straight. The wind had changed. A scent had penetrated his land, a scent that told him...what had been happening.

* * *

><p>AN: :D 100 more words! Oh – I thought it might be useful to let you know that these prompts are time-synchronous...so, I and II happen at the same time in different places, III and IV happen at the same time in different places...and so forth. This won't be the case for the whole piece; I will let you know when the format changes – I expect not for a while, though!

Please Review!


	6. Chapter 6

Drabble Collection: Alpha

VI

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge:

_Damsel Indecent_

The music – coming, as it did, from nowhere - surprised him.

So did Kagome.

She returned to him sinuous, transformed into a sensual being whose sleeves and floating skirts were instruments to call desire. Where her skin was revealed it glistened under the flicker of flame as though oiled, summoning, beckoning - she held his attention with the curves of her body and the penetrating shimmer of her wide-open eyes, golden in the reflected firelight.

The toss of her hair made him breathe faster; she was closer now, and her fingers moved on his chest, dancing as delicately as her feet. He reached for her, took her hips in his hands and then the tempting swing of her breasts, her nipples darker than her skin, crinkled, pointed -

Her clothes...where...?

The beat of the drums increased, and now there was flute, wailing, pure sound. Inuyasha heard the sounds, felt them in the soles of his feet and up into his flesh. He wanted her. _Wanted _her. He had been warned – but she had waited for him – for _him!_ -

Blindly, the blood rising in his eyes, he reached out for her – and she was there, naked now, dragging off his clothes and still encouraging his hands moving over her skin. She was rough with him, climbed onto him and breathed his groan, half-laughing, speaking close to his ear with the rhythm of the drums, her body, his body.

"Inuyasha...Inuyasha...you waited so long, Inuyasha -"

And then -

Fire; claws on her skin.

"Ahh -"

Melody; method and madness.

"Kagome, Kagome...Kagome -"

His mouth pulled darkness to the surface of her skin.

His fingers, indelicate, stirred her soul into liquid life.

"Inuyasha! - now! Yes...now..."

She was his, then – now and _forever_.

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><p>AN: Dun dun dun! This is one is 300 words, holy monkey! The lemon made me do it! :P

P lease Review!


	7. Chapter 7

Drabble Collection: Alpha

VII

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

D: Dapocaginous: _mean-spirited; heartless_

His brother had disregarded a warning, a custom, a law.

His brother had taken a mate.

_Defiance! How dare he!_

Power rose off his skin and shimmered like heat in the starlight.

Behind him, there was a rustle, one of the females standing, approaching him.

"My lord..."

Sesshomaru turned and allowed his claws to burn through her throat without a change of expression. He threw the body behind him, into the garden. The leaves blurred, awash in red.

This was the last time his brother would torment him. This time - _this time,_ there would be punishment.

Terrible punishment.

_Inuyasha!_

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><p>AN: Another Alphabet Challenge! I really liked this word, especially since it followed cardroid – the leaves in this scene are the same as the leaves in the scene for cardroid, which is number...V! :D Heart-shaped, heartless...I love it! I must be lame...:P

Oh, yeah. 100 words!

Please Review!


	8. Chapter 8

Drabble Collection: Alpha

VIII

Prompt From The Greek Challenge

_Deimos_

A dream; a dream of blood and darkness.

"_But...Big Brother -"_

"_Never call me that! You will not taint my name with your dirty blood!"_

_A fist reached out in violence, spun him into the dirt. He stood, bleeding, refusing his tears. _

"_Three things allow your life. Are you listening?"_

_He wiped away blood with his red sleeve – **father's red sleeve **- _

"_I-I'm listenin'." _

"_Do not come to the fortress in the West. Do not speak of me as your **kin**. And never – **never **-take a mate."_

_**Never **take a mate** - **_

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><p>AN: _Deimos_ is Fear...the personification of Terror; the fear and dread that precedes something horrible. 100 words.

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	9. Chapter 9

Drabble Collection: Alpha

IX

Prompt From The Greek Challenge

_Phobos_

There was no warning – just the dream, followed by absolute destruction.

Inuyasha stood, instantly awake, hand on his sword – but he was too late. His enemy had come on him so quickly that he hadn't even caught a scent. Now, he could _see_ who it was.

"Sesshomaru! Kagome, stay behind me -"

But this battle was not to be like all the others. He could _feel_ it – he knew why it was.

He had disobeyed.

He had taken a mate.

In an eerie replay of his dream he suffered a blow that sent him spinning face first to the ground. He stood quickly, wiping blood from his mouth, and then couldn't avoid another furious fist.

_Big Brother, Why -_

It nearly split his skull. He saw through a red haze.

_Father's red sleeve?_

Sesshomaru was already standing in front of Kagome, lifting her, holding her very still. And Inuyasha heard his voice, cool, passionless...

_Never take a mate!_

"Miko, everything I tell you, you will do, in order to gain this worthless, half-breed whelp a few more minutes of life. Do you understand?"

"I – I understand – b-but -"

"Silence!"

She became _frantically_ silent. Sesshomaru approached his brother.

"I should kill you for what you have done. Do you think you have dominance? Do you think your one lucky blow has any meaning now? Do you hear me, Inuyasha?"

_Are you listening?_

"I'm – listenin'."

From a place he should not touch, Inuyasha drew raw, ragged energy. _Kagome_ needed him, Kagome! – he could not die now! Later - when she was safe - he could contemplate death.

It would not be the first time -

But when he could look up, they were gone.

_Both _of them.

"_**Kagome**_!"

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! I think this might be my favorite amount of words for these...100 is so short! What do you think? _Phobos_ is the personification of Horror...the feeling one gets after coming to an awful realization or experiencing a deeply unpleasant occurrence

Please Review!


	10. Chapter 10

Drabble Collection: Alpha

X

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Damsel In Danger_

Sesshomaru had sensed the shift coming over his brother's power, the wildness-that-was-death. That _animal _– that was not who he had come to fight. It was dishonorable to both of them...as much as he disliked admitting that anything could dishonor the half-breed.

But now – what to do with this miko?

This miko...who was technically his _mate_?

The Inu within him was raw with hunger; he was one with its desire...and perhaps that was best, after all. Many youkai used human women to sate their lust; women, more amenable to youkai charm than females...women, softer, more vulnerable...sweet.

_Sweet_.

It was also the thing Inuyasha would hate the most; he knew that. And this was a thing that Inuyasha had done to himself – _by_ himself. He had been warned, long ago. Sesshomaru remembered his own words:

"_Never take a mate!"_

To do so – for one not Alpha, that was to surrender the chosen female to Leader's Right.

Survival demanded that only the strongest mate; that only the strongest give life to the next generation.

Almost smiling, he stared down at the miko now unconscious in his grasp.

He had not had such a pretty toy in quite a while.

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><p>AN: Damsel is _indeed_ in danger! 200 words! ← Never done that before! :P That's it for now; I have to format more before I can post them! As always, Please Review!


	11. Chapter 11

Drabble Collection: Alpha

XI

The Alphabet Challenge

E: Ecardinate: _without hinges_

Kagome woke in darkness, utter darkness, and scrabbled about on her knees – encountered softness, then cold floor, a wall – a door?

_A door!_

But she could find no handle; it wouldn't slide, either – wouldn't budge, wouldn't open -

It opened; but not because of her.

Light poured in from the corridor behind the door and made her blink; she shied back from the only thing that was visible to her, a terrible silhouette.

_Sesshomaru!_

His fingers reached out slowly for her cheek...and then instead, he turned and stalked back through the door. It sealed behind him, left neither handle, nor hinges, nor seam of light.

A wail rose in her soul, but Kagome quenched it, stared at the door with furious eyes.

"Just you wait; I _will_ get out of here, Sesshomaru! I will - and you'll regret it!"

She hoped he'd heard her threat. Even if she had to live sustained by her own brightness – it would be enough. She would _make _it enough.

No one could save her, this time.

Not even...

_Inuyasha. Inuyasha, are you alive; are you coming for me?_

_Don't come for me, Inuyasha – even you aren't strong enough._

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><p>AN: Look how naughty I am, straying from my own rule :P Alphabet Challenge joy, all caught up! All I could think this whole time was that silly riddle from the Hobbit about an Egg. "...and golden treasure inside is hid." 200 words!

Please Review!


	12. Chapter 12

Drabble Collection: Alpha

XII

Prompt From GMDDN: #3

_Pressure_

Perhaps hours passed; perhaps days. Regardless, when he came back for her, she was not prepared.

Ignoring her struggles, Sesshomaru pressed her flat against the door. His nose ran over her throat, scenting her; his teeth were hot against her skin, the pounding pulse that she could not contain, the throbbing scar that marked her Inuyasha's mate.

It pained her, while she was near _him_.

And it beckoned him; called him. He spoke against her skin.

"If he had not marked you, I could have denied it. If he had not laid his claim openly, perhaps I could have forgotten it. _Perhaps_! But _now_ – there is no way out for you, miko."

His voice was a low rumble, lower than she had ever heard it, and his eyes were red, dark, the color that was the onset of terror... and it was not terrifying her, but...

There was burning - more than fire, like hot metal pressed to her skin, in the mark that Inuyasha had left. She felt Sesshomaru's mouth on it then, and it was soothing, luxurious, his tongue on that one place.

She felt him shaking a little, and knew he was laughing, laughing at her vulnerability.

She lashed out at him the only way she could:

"You may have brought me here - but I don't want this!"

"You don't want this?"

"No! I want to be a miko, and _Inuyasha's_ mate; I want -"

"And Inuyasha did not tell you what being his mate entailed; did not tell you that once he had claimed you, you were _mine_? Unforgivable. Or tell me, miko...how deep is my brother's lack of knowledge? How vulnerable is he? Did he not know?"

He smiled, dangerous, and brought his mouth back to her throat.

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><p>AN: Whee! From GMDDN (GutterMarbles Drabble/Drawble Night), just this past Saturday (Actually that was...May 21st? Sometime like that). It was fun and woo! Good prompts and good people. Anyone who read it then, it's been slightly revised, but is still 300 words!

Please Review!


	13. Chapter 13

Drabble Collection: Alpha

XIII

Prompt From GMDDN: #4

_Spiked_

"He - I don't know if he knows or not! He doesn't...really tell me much. About his past. What he learned, where. From who."

Her words came in spurts, some soft, some louder. Sesshomaru could not decide if she was trying to deceive him. The air was too heavily spiked with the dampness of her lust - but that, he could use against her. Whatever her thoughts, her will, her body would be broken by need and the force of the bond.

"Inuyasha keeps you in willing bondage - a witless love-slave? Even _I_ never possessed such an idea."

"You! You - _beast_!"

She could have sworn he was smiling again, could feel his lips move against her skin, but all her complaints, her anger, dissolved into shock.

In that same moment, he had decided to tear apart her clothes.

"Can you taste my desire, miko, in the air between us? I can taste yours; sweet, and salt."

He stared at her for a moment, the want blanking his mind so much that he actually licked his lips, looking at her.

"Should I taste you, miko?"

A wave of lurid thoughts crested in her mind, and Kagome felt a rush of heat drop into her belly, begin to spread. Without his mouth on it, the mark at her throat began to burn again.

Sesshomaru stood unmoving, watching her warily, and she couldn't understand why.

He was waiting for her to make some move to cover herself, to harm him, to run...to make good on her shouted threat. But she stood still, one of her hands hovering at her throat, the other flat against the wall, fingers splayed.

"You are in pain, miko. I can soothe you; that is why I brought you here."

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><p>AN: Suuuure he can...heh.

Please Review!


	14. Chapter 14

Drabble Collection: Alpha

XIV

Prompt From GMDDN: #5

_King/Queen_

Kagome tried to summon failing reserves of strength. The heat in her skin was spreading outward from the mark she concealed with her hand, focusing in her nipples, pulsing downward to meet with the heat in her belly.

"You are not the only one who is _afflicted_, miko. You do not even begin to understand..."

He leaned forward and sucked the tip of her left breast into his mouth, allowed his teeth to graze the crinkled point of her nipple. He stood back when he heard a breathy exhalation, a moan.

Slowly, making sure her eyes were on him, he stripped - white fur, yellow silk, white silk. He could tell where she was trying _not_ to look; he could see that it was doing her no good. There was surprise on her face, and desire...and she was fighting that desire, fighting it with all her strength.

"It will do you no good to fight it, miko. If I, Sesshomaru, could not conquer this bond then you, a human miko, have no chance against your instincts."

"In...instincts? I'm not youkai, I'm human! I have no instincts, Sesshomaru!"

He was amused that she should be so adamant despite her predicament; could she really deny her own flesh?

"You don't? I wonder, then, why it is you have not run from me – have not fought me."

His fingers flickered against hot, wet softness. Her thoughts spun. Inuyasha had not touched her this way; Inuyasha's hands were rough, inexperienced, but his kisses tender, full of love.

When Sesshomaru kissed her, there was no tenderness in it at all - only need.

He spoke against her skin as if he could read her mind.

"Do not think of Inuyasha. He is nothing, worthless. _I _will make you my Queen..."

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><p>AN: Poor Kagome. So doomed.

Please Review!


	15. Chapter 15

Drabble Collection Alpha

XV

Warning: "soft" non-con towards the end

Prompt From The Greek Challenge

_Ktema Es Aei _

"Do you know what it is that the half-breed has done to you, miko?"

"I don't – Inuyasha made me his woman – his mate! But y_ou_ – you can't really want this! You _hate_ humans – it should _disgust_ you to touch me!"

One eyebrow deigned to drift upward at her comment.

"You do _not_ know me."

She flinched back. The single statement held more fury than she had heard from him...ever.

"I should expect nothing else; you are only a woman, and Inuyasha is half-breed, ignorant of youkai custom."

He seemed to be deciding something, and in the process almost ignoring her, their naked nearness...idly, he toyed with one nipple.

Kagome moaned, flushed with shame.

He eyed her, thinking wicked thoughts, then gathered wetness on his fingers that had slipped down her thighs.

"So, woman...you have no instincts, you are human. Do you, then, lust for me so?"

He was all-over hardness, skin like silk...strength like steel. She found herself unable to answer his accusation, felt in herself the knowledge that she should be angry -

But oh, that burning pain! The mark that had been left by Inuyasha's teeth felt like acid boring into her flesh every moment. It subsided only under Sesshomaru's touch.

_Inuyasha, what have you done to me?_

Gone from her was uncertainty about his reluctance. The reason was here in _this _-!

_Why didn't you tell me, Inuyasha!_

Sesshomaru dragged her away from the wall and tossed her down onto the floor.

"You are mine now, miko."

_Now, and forever. _

He entered her harshly, wholly.

Tears had been waiting for this moment. They flooded from her eyes.

Curious, he leaned over her; gathered them onto his tongue.

_Salt _

_and Sweet -_

_my miko. _

_Mine._

"_**Mine.**_"

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><p>AN: _Ktema Es Aei_ is possession for eternity. Eternity...is a very long time. More soon! The next one needs a bit of tweaking. 300 words. Oh, and I should mention that there are no longer two-scenes-one-time – should have put that in before...

Please Review!


	16. Chapter 16

Drabble Collection Alpha

XVI

Prompt From GMDDN: #8

_Picture/Photo_

He had wanted to love her this way from the moment he saw her, had painted a picture of it in his mind, though he would never admit that: her clothes had been obscene, but he had eaten the long, pale legs with his eyes – and the curves of her body gleaming when the light shined through her shirt. Now, he could not decide if he wanted this because of _that_...or because he _needed_ it.

He was youkai; lust was half his nature.

"Tell me now that you don't want me, miko. Tell me now – _No_! - tell me now, you have no_ instincts_."

He held still, withdrew almost completely from her, let his claws drift over her skin.

When he stopped – _agony_. Pain – _real _pain, pain like a lance of fire.

She knew that his words were a trap, that later - much later - she would hate herself. But when he stopped -

Her hips were humming in his hands; her tears, vanished.

Sesshomaru watched the dilation of her pupils, the almost invisible trembling of her eyelashes - anything that might distract him from her body's wet heat. He could feel the bending of her will, her submission – even if it came to him with death as the only alternative.

He steeled himself, swallowed dryly.

Her face was dark in the shadow of her hair, hidden from him -

But he could hear her voice, soft, pleading...

So much more than he had hoped for.

"Sesshomaru - Sesshomaru, please, I want - please, _please, _I _need_ you, you can't stop - you – you _can't-_"

Like fire on oil, he climbed her body, found her most sensitive nerves and stroked them with his fingers, his claws...

Gently, so gently, while he thrust into her again and again.

* * *

><p>AN: Yep. Like I said, Kagome is doomed. But at least it's a _nice_ kind of doom! I have _no _idea why I'm writing this so fast...I've done a whole bunch of prompts from DSA today! Yay! Greek Challenge- I'm almost done. Then comes...well, I actually don't know! Perhaps some Damsel In Distress...Give me prompts, oh mighty reviewers!

Please Review!


	17. Chapter 17

Drabble Collection Alpha

XVII

Prompt From The Greek Challenge

_Hamartia_

Sesshomaru expected a protest, a denial now that he was meeting her needs...but her hands reached for him and wove into his hair, pulled him down to her mouth. He had not kissed her, not really, but she changed that, stroked his lips with her tongue, gave him a shiver, made him wonder if her mouth was as hot, as pleasurable -

When she was trembling and panting under him again, he knew it was time.

His teeth went deep into Inuyasha's mark, overwriting it, overriding it. He saw shock on her face, pain - the knowledge of what he was doing, but...no anger.

_Mine! Never again yours, Inuyasha -._

He growled, a deep vibration that shook her whole body. Again, his hands touched her, accompanied the steady rhythm of his hips -

As it had done when she mated Inuyasha, youki flushed through Kagome, setting all her nerves on fire; first the terrible pain and then, just as terrible, the wracking, razor-edged pleasure. It was pleasure she did not want, but she could not deny it; her skin crackled with light like red electricity.

Her legs tightened around his hips, pulled him deep, deep, deep...

Sesshomaru smiled a wild smile of victory that no one could see. His power was _much_ stronger than Inuyasha's. He could see in her face when he claimed her that she had been expecting _something_ like this - the rush of the bonding, that most powerful pleasure...

He did not even need to move; just let the power wash over her, let the bond complete itself...

Let her damn herself with her words, and her not-words, and her writhing.

"Mine, miko – you are _mine_."

And in her madness, utterly mindless, she could say only -

"Yes, yes - _**yes**_ _-_"

She was learning reality, now.

So much truth might tear her into pieces.

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><p>AN: _Hamartia_ is most often used to refer to a tragic flaw, in the literary sense...but it can also mean _sin_.

Please Review!


	18. Chapter 18

Drabble Collection Alpha

XVIII

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Damsel In Despair_

Morning came, not with awkwardness, but with desolation.

_What have I done? What have - I...I...I -_

"Inu - Inuyasha – so sorry, Inuyasha..._so_ – _**sorry**_ -"

The words escaped her lips in great, heaving sobs. She clutched a pillow from the futon that was laid across the floor to her breast, and wet it with tears. She had been violated – she had been _stolen –_

Sated, somehow still unsatisfied, Sesshomaru dressed quickly and stood looking down at Kagome's crumpled figure.

He did not, could not understand her pain. Even if he had been told it was guilt she was feeling, he would not have understood. All he heard was Inuyasha's name, and it riled him to fury; it was _his _name that should be on her lips, even in anger -

Even in tears!

_He _was the strong one; he was the one she must want. She had given him her submission. She had chosen _him, _over death.

Now, her irrationality had set instinct and consciousness at war in him, and he _did not like it_.

The miko would have to die; soon.

_Soon_.

But first, she would be the lash in his hand to whip Inuyasha, the salt to pour into his wounds; first, she would be a distraction, something besides blood that could soothe and satisfy his Inu urge for a mate.

Soon would be...when he tired of her.

He would not be compelled -

Not by his brother's foolishness in taking a mate that _he_ would be forced to claim; not by this miko with her fragile body's pleasures; not by the _irritation_ of the beast that was his demon nature, when _his_ _miko_ – his frail and mortally human miko – did not submit. Did not _obey_.

Still - there were ways to _make _her.

* * *

><p>AN: Phew! That was hard! I had to search out more prompts, and then I remembered I still haven't finished all these! Damsel in Distress, woo! And DSA is meeting in...TWO HOURS! That's midnight, eastern time, folks. Which means a new Challenge, I hope, and more more prompts! But everyone should thank Lillian, to whom I dedicate this chapter, because without her putting up with my long PM explanations, Chapters 18, 19, and 20 wouldn't exist! :D

Oh, yeah: 300 words. :P

Please Review!


	19. Chapter 19

Drabble Collection Alpha

XIX

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenged

_Dare_

It took time, but eventually the miko grew silent again and turned to glare at him...and as she did so, he was surprised. The pink pulse of her aura had at its edges now a vibrating red. Had _he_ done that to her?

_I will do _more_ to her._

He was surprised – again – when she spoke, and there was venom heavy in her voice.

"Why are you _staring_ at me? Thinking of more terrible things to do to me?"

He struggled with darkness at the thought of _terrible things_. Her voice held a taunt, a dare.

_She broke under the pressure of pain, of pleasure. Does she really think it is so easy to undo? _

He smiled thinly. It would be amusing to watch her struggle, if that was so. He chose to disregard both her tone and the intent of her question.

"Dress and ready yourself; we leave in one hour."

When he returned, he raised an eyebrow at the ragged garments she had somehow managed to arrange around her body. She had tied the skirt's waistband at one side, but her breasts remained painfully exposed by the shredded material of her shirt. Her undergarments had been a lost cause.

"Miko, that will not do."

"It's not like I have anything else!"

Her anger expressed itself admirably in her tone.

She was shocked into silence when he began to disrobe, and then shuddered in relief when he only removed his outermost layer and draped the long haori around her.

"Come. _Now_."

Struggling not to trip on the sleeves and hem, she followed after him.

"You are taking me back? Back to – back to Inuyasha?"

"Yes. Yes, I am taking you back."

But the _smile_ as he spoke -

* * *

><p>AN: More Damsel in Distress. Woo! I think...I may have one more in me. Let's see...I think there is! I Do Hereby Dedicate This Chapter Unto: DemonQueen! Because she left a threatening review, and aren't those just the best kind? :P

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	20. Chapter 20

Drabble Collection Alpha

XX

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Drop_

Sesshomaru traveled at a speed slow enough Inuyasha would be sure to detect him approaching with the miko. It was the exact opposite of the last time...but his motives were different now. He _wanted_ Inuyasha to prepare for him; to know he was coming.

True to form, Inuyasha was standing with Tetsusaiga unsheathed as he dropped down from the clouds to the ground and stood, one hand holding onto the miko, one hand poised over his sword. The Houshi and the Taijiya had come to stand with him...but they did not attack.

All of them – Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku – even Shippou – stared with wide eyes as Kagome turned to face them. Her hair was in disarray, her face stained with tears and with scratches, tiny flecks of blood; her eyes were red, swollen, and her hands tightly clenched on the opposite elbows, her shoulders drawn in, hunched, as if she held close a terrible pain.

She took a step away from Sesshomaru, and then another, clutching the haori he had given her, now, pulling it tight to her body...

Looking at her, seeing her desperation, he knew suddenly and exactly what it was she was trying to hide, and came to two decisions then: what he would _do_ to her – how to break her...how to bring her back to that moment of submission and force her remain that way. And what to call her – only here, here, in front of Inuyasha, where it would harm _him_ not at all and his brother...quite horribly.

He was unaware that he was smiling a thin and terrible smile. Perhaps Inuyasha had done him a favor, taking this miko as a mate.

In doing so, the hanyou had handed him a weapon infinitely sharper than Tetsusaiga.

Sharper than any sword.

* * *

><p>AN: Mwaha. Sesshomaru's going to be eeeevil, Sesshomaru's going to be eeeevil...for a little while, anyway. Last one for tonight, I need sleep for work and not more formatting :P But 21 is "done", so you can look forward to that for tomorrow!

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	21. Chapter 21

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXI

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Dread_

As Kagome took one last step away from him, shoulders relaxing just that tiny bit that told him she thought she was safe, Sesshomaru took a step forward, and she froze in place.

"_Mate_, you will give me my haori now."

Dread scribbled out her features.

Sesshomaru nearly smirked, looking at Inuyasha; the half-breed thought he was stripping the miko _naked._

_No...no, Inuyasha. It is far, _far_ worse than that_.

"_**Now**_, **mate.** My haori."

Kagome stumbled, a physical response to the demand in Sesshomaru's voice. She _could not _disobey – why; _how_?

_No, no, no – I don't want – I won't let them – I don't want them to _see _-_

Slowly, _fighting_ it, brought to her knees by the burning pain that awakened at her defiance, Kagome unclenched her fists, slid Sesshomaru's silk down her shoulders, and then stood, turning away her face from her friends. With her hands, she tried to retain something of her modesty, but she still couldn't help but blush in shame.

More than anything, she hadn't wanted any of them to see her like _this –_ _especially_ not Inuyasha. Dozens of bite marks were visible, especially on her breasts, her thighs...many long, thin scratches, dark now with dried blood, marked her skin in abstract patterns.

"_Here_!"

She was in pain as she spoke; Sesshomaru could see it. It would take time for her flesh to become accustomed to the demands of his will.

"Good, mate. _You_ do not need punishment."

His emphasis was purposeful.

Inuyasha knew whose _punishment_ this was.

Sesshomaru pulled his haori from her hands, then bent to soothe the angry mark at her throat.

A whimper of relief escaped her lips, and Sesshomaru stared over her shoulder at Inuyasha, watching his ears _twitch_ with that sound.

Such a lovely sound.

* * *

><p>AN: Ah, so many people's dread in this chapter: Kagome's dread of everyone seeing her sadly destroyed self, Inuyasha's dread of seeing the exact same thing...and probably Sango's dread that Miroku spent this whole scene peeking at Kagome's boobies. Irreverent, I know. :P

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	22. Chapter 22

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXII

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Dashing_

When he was gone, Kagome stayed very still, shivering a little in the cool morning air. She was sore all over; her body ached, and her heart ached, and her _soul_ ached, under the pressure of the stares that were focused on her.

Sango's expression showed only horror; Miroku had turned his back, was doing something with his robe – but Inuyasha...

_Oh, Inuyasha._

There was anger on Inuyasha's face, a terrible confusion, a question – a _question_ and it was directed at _her -_

And she knew what it was. Knew; and it was too much - her feelings, her pain too dense to move through.

"I didn't – I didn't want you to _see_. I didn't want you to _know_. But I couldn't – say _no_. Couldn't fight him -"

Inuyasha stared at her, and the anger faded from his expression; _everything_ faded from his expression, left..blankness.

"You've got no choice. You – you're _his_ now. You _submitted_."

Kagome felt panic, the air thickening, her breath coming short.

"I – I don't – I _never _-"

And then she fell to silence, and her knees.

Because she knew it was true.

But Inuyasha was not through yet. He spoke woodenly as he stared across the space between them; so little space – but in that moment it was an impenetrable, impassable distance.

"You can't deny him, Kagome. And you couldn't deny the bond. If you had – you would've died. You – you're only human."

And there was such terrible grief in his face, such terrible loss, that she couldn't even be angry at him for his slight.

It was true; she was _only_ human.

And Sesshomaru was _only _youkai.

And Inuyasha was desperately, ridiculously _both_ -

And how they did suffer for it.

* * *

><p>AN: I interpreted this prompt in the sense of dashing as "to ruin something; to frustrate or destroy". Also, as I post this, I'm posting edited and finalized versions of Chapters 16, 17, 20, and 21. Nothing huge, but I think they flow much better now! More soon! (There should be another GMDDN - then I'd be forced to write multiple chapters extremely quickly!)

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	23. Chapter 23

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXIII

Prompt From The Wanted! Challenge

_Approach with Caution_

It was Shippou – Shippou, dismayed, confused - who went to Kagome first. And he didn't understand when she flinched away from him, when she bent down, her face against her knees, her hair a black fan in the dirt, and wept.

He sniffed at her, carefully, wondering.

She smelled of salt and blood and _Sesshomaru_...and he began to understand. A little bit at a time, horror leaked through. He looked between Kagome, and Inuyasha –

And he saw _death. _

And was afraid.

He had built his little world on such a fragile foundation; was it all falling away now?

* * *

><p>AN: Poor baby! This little scene in Shippou's POV popped into my head when I started this prompt, and wouldn't go away. _I_ think it's because of r0o...so this one's for you! :D

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	24. Chapter 24

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXIV

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Damsel Indignant _

Seeing Shippou's confusion, Miroku came forward and laid his robe gently over Kagome's back.

"Kagome – Kagome, let's go back to the village and get you cleaned up. Then...then we'll figure out what to do."

He summoned Sango with his eyes, and she ran forward.

"We're here, Kagome -"

But Kagome only had eyes for Inuyasha.

Inuyasha, who stared forward in silence, his eyes tracking the dark path of his brother's feet.

Could he not bear to look at her now? Had that been the _thing_ she heard in his voice when he said she was Sesshomaru's; the thing that rested on the truth he did not say? She was no longer _his_.

No longer _Inuyasha's_.

And suddenly she was _so __**angry**_** – **why didn't he say? Why didn't he _ever_ tell her that _this_ was the price? That his brother could _do_ this? That after she belonged to him, there would be horror?

And she thought a terrible thought; it came to her in Sesshomaru's voice.

_How deep is his lack of knowledge? Does he not know?_

But that was wrong; he _did_ know! He had _told _her – but not soon enough!

"_You can't deny him, Kagome. And you couldn't deny the bond. If you had – you would've died. You – you're only human."_

A cry welled up in her throat as her friends tried to turn her away; a cry full of fury and heartbreak, wrath and indignation.

"Inuyasha! What did you do to me, Inuyasha?"

If he was startled by her accusation, he did not show it. Slowly, he turned, and for the first time since the very beginning, she saw a demon in his _hanyou_ face.

"I_ loved_ you. Kagome..."

What could she say?

_Why didn't he **tell** me?_

She could say...nothing.

* * *

><p>AN: And, in the words of Lillian, the "Emotional Cremation" continues! I do hereby dedicate this chapter unto her, for the coining of such a hilarious term.

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	25. Chapter 25

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXV

Prompt From The Wanted! Challenge

_Partners In Crime_

Kagome's silence following that terrible cry said many things that Inuyasha did not want to hear. He heard her anger in it, and turned almost reflexively away; he heard her heartbreak, and did not know how to reassure her. He wanted to go to her; wanted to pull her close to his body and huddle against her shivering skin and kiss her hair -

But she had shied away from Shippou, even little Shippou. She was uncomfortable even with Miroku and Sango, and they were _human_ – safe.

Certainly she wouldn't want _him_ to touch her. No...not him.

Not him.

That was the opposite of the truth, of course. She was angry but that didn't matter; she wanted to know that he loved her still, wanted nothing more than to be held by him. By Inuyasha, _her Inuyasha, _ for whom she had fought and bled and wept, for whom she had given up _everything_ – her family, her future.

She had no idea why he was not coming to her, could only sense in it a total rejection, something she had always, in her secret self, been afraid of - because she was not _her_.

Was not _Kikyou_.

Kagome had come second...and so she would _always_ be afraid.

Again, she found herself crying, moisture stinging in the dampness on her cheeks.

For no reason she could explain, she thought suddenly of Sesshomaru, the furious tenderness of his expression as he had leaned over her and lapped away her tears. Except those thoughts were bound up with pain, with the moments before and after, when he -

Her thoughts faltered.

_When he...what? Stole me? Raped me? ...Saved me?_

And she remembered something else, then.

"_You are not the only one who is afflicted, miko. You do not even begin to understand..."_

* * *

><p>AN: Kagome and Inuyasha, Partners In Crime...Each one of them contributing to irreconcilable differences that need not be so irreconcilable. The problem with this, though, is that Inuyasha is really quite dumb; and also...well...he has a big mouth. [Doom Is Coming]

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	26. Chapter 26

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXVI

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

F: Facinorous: _wickedly atrocious_

Sesshomaru did not return home.

Instead, he stayed, wandering the pathless woods; he knew his scent was layered far too thickly over Kagome now for Inuyasha to detect him at this distance by his presence alone.

Not many minutes after he had left his miko, he heard her screaming and nearly turned back until he deciphered the words in it.

"_Inuyasha! What did you do to me, Inuyasha!_"

He continued the way he had been going then, and smiled to himself.

In that scream was the proof that the thoughts he had planted in her had taken root, were growing well. _He_ had not told Inuyasha the _why_ of the things he was never to do...but the Inu in the boy-pup had known...or would know by now. An Inu knew the rules of dominance by instinct; knew the rights of an Alpha and its own place in the pack.

The woman, though – _she_ would not have known the consequences. She would grow angry...and more than angry.

_And it will be all for you, Inuyasha...all for you, that anger. When I come for her again, you will be _grateful_ for it, and _hate_ me - _

_More than you already do._

* * *

><p>AN: I looked this up, to see how something could be wickedly atrocious. This is how - : P. No, but seriously, to be wicked can be anything from "to be evil" to "to be mischievous" - and even, in slang, to be "really good". Atrocious, however, only means variations on "bad" and "evil"...and comes from a Latin root meaning "fierce, cruel", along with another meaning "dark". So... Sesshomaru keeps being eeeevil, Sesshomaru keeps being eeeevil... only, _mischieviously_ this time :D

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	27. Chapter 27

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXVII

Prompt From The Damsel In Distress Challenge

_Dense_

Immersed in personal darkness, Kagome remained alone, avoiding her friends, avoiding especially Inuyasha.

At first, she was too angry to even look at him.

She contemplated returning through the well, going...home. She wanted to run away, _far_ away...but...

_If I do that, if I leave Inuyasha behind – I will never know __**why**__, or if -_

A sigh shook her. She was still angry at Inuyasha, very angry; she would tell him, _soon_, what it was that had infuriated her; she would see what he had to say for himself.

She _had_ to.

During long hours of thinking, two realizations had come to her.

First, that whatever Inuyasha had failed to tell her, she had brought part of this trauma on herself the night she had given up waiting; the night she had forced his hands. Second, that she had _known_ Inuyasha was afraid of _something_. He _should_ have told her...but she could have asked.

Angrily, Kagome rubbed her eyes. She was _not_ going to start crying again, she was _not_. It was time to go find him and -

There was suddenly a hand over her mouth, a mouth beside her ear.

"You will be _quiet_, miko. _Mate_."

* * *

><p>AN: Mwaha. Yes, I did just end it there. But I will post 28 later...and I swear not to rest until it's done! I shall not flag or fail...I shall write on the seas and oceans...:P 200 words!

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	28. Chapter 28

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXVIII

Prompt From The Wanted! Challenge

_Armed and Dangerous_

In planning for the _punishment_ of his brother, Sesshomaru had made only a single mistake. This miko...he had underestimated the strength of her heart; he had reckoned without her inherent goodness, her forgiving nature. He had intended his brother to be destroyed; _then_ Sesshomaru would kill him.

And her anger _had_ been...promising.

But as he had watched her he had seen it dissipate without confrontation, fade away into soaked-salt smiles. She had avoided Inuyasha completely.

He did _not_ understand.

He circled her, studied her.

_What is your reason, miko? What keeps you from wrath?_

Failing to understand even now, he watched the wildness of her darting eyes, the quiver of her lips...and encountered something faint and foolish in her scent.

_Hope. __That__ is why she does not destroy him, confront him? Even now, she is waiting for the half-breed to return to her! She thinks that he will fight against me, and win. She thinks...that Inuyasha can defeat me? You will suffer for that, miko!_

Something in him had exploded with rage. How dare she! To choose his _brother_ over _him_ – the half-breed, the weaker one, the blight on his blood!

And he had offered to make her his Queen, his Empress, to place her above all others -

She would turn that away for _Inuyasha_?

He felt equal parts rage and confusion, and allowed the rise of his youki to express his displeasure. It brought her down to her knees and slowly, he drew his sword, savoring the sound of steel.

"Miko, I know what it is you are thinking."

The gleaming blade reached out and rested against the pulse pounding in her throat.

"Obviously you do not remember what happened the last time I encountered Inuyasha."

"And obviously you don't remember what happened the _first_ time!"

Anger-sparks flashed in her eyes; Sesshomaru's lip lifted in a snarl.

He was tempted to kill her, so tempted...but no.

_Not yet_.

"Miko, Inuyasha was _nothing_ to me. _Nothing_, until he claimed _you._"

He felt her tremble, felt her shivering work through the blade of his sword and into the palm of his hand.

"But you no longer belong to Inuyasha, _mate_. Now, you are not his but _mine_. Do you think that will make a difference?"

The sword caressed her skin.

"_I_ think it will. I think it will make_ all _the difference."

* * *

><p>AN: Swoosh. Sorry these took so long, but heat killed my power :( And now thunderstorms have been threatening all day; oh how I wish they would come and take away the sun. I think I'm going to move to Hokkaido and learn how to talk to the hot spring monkeys. One more chapter that's done, and then I need to finish editing 30. 400 words!

Please Review!


	29. Chapter 29

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXIX

Prompt From The Wanted! Challenge

_Into The Sunset_

The wind came to Inuyasha from the north, and he cherished that wind for the scents it did not carry. Lately, everything around him bore the odor of Sesshomaru's aura; that smell was half the reason Inuyasha had been avoiding his _mate_.

He thought the word, and heard it echo in his brother's voice. He should have known better than to hope that he had a chance at happiness, real happiness. He should have turned her away, should have run. Anything_, anything_ to keep Sesshomaru's hands from her -

But it was too late, and now they would both pay for his lapse.

Would she be angry with him forever? Would she leave and go back to her own time? He could hardly blame her if she did; her suffering was all his fault.

The problem was that what Kagome thought of as her _suffering_ was very different from what he imagined. Inuyasha could only think of how he had failed to protect her; it didn't occur to him that she might be angry because he had never thought of telling her the warning he had received. Such things were compartmented off in his mind, marked "Demon!" and left to lie among memories he did not touch.

He had always been afraid of his Inu-self, the demon that might creep into his actions and his feelings unnoticed and leave terrible marks on the ones he cared for -

And he had been _right_ to fear; it had happened. He had marked out a claim on Kagome's flesh, forgetting the consequences.

He felt the future he had imagined fading into smoke, blowing away on a hint of westerly wind to mingle with the red and orange of the setting sun – and then caught a hint of bloody scent.

_Kagome!_

* * *

><p>AN: Inuyasha, oh Inuyasha. This takes place during the same time as #28. 300 words!

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	30. Chapter 30

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXX

Prompt From The Wanted! Challenge

_Last Stand_

"No – no, that isn't true! There has to be – it can't -"

"_Can't_? I do not lie. I can demand anything of you, miko, and he knows it. Anything at all...and you have no _choice_. Just as I had no choice."

Kagome shook her head in denial, not wanting to believe.

"There's always a choice! You didn't have to -"

He reached forward with one swift, clean movement, and caught her by the throat. With his thumb, he turned her head, traced the pulsing line of a vein in her throat with his claw.

"No. I did_ not _have to. I could have killed you, and saved myself the trouble – I could have stood aside and merely _watched _you die. It would have been easy, miko. It would _still _be easy."

Her breathing was quick and shallow. Fear was a bitter dominant in her usually sweet scent, but he enjoyed it, leaned close to her and drew his tongue along her throat, the mark of possession, her shoulder. He could taste her fear, her anxiety, a shuddering spark of heavenly energies...

_Exquisite_.

"Well, miko? Is that the _choice_ you wish I had made?"

"N-no -"

"I am _not_ the one responsible for this, miko."

Kagome didn't want to be reminded of that now, didn't want to be angry with Inuyasha while she was standing with Sesshomaru, but she couldn't help it even if it felt like a betrayal. Words burst from her in frustration.

"Inuyasha won't tell me _anything_! I haven't seen him since...since..."

Sesshomaru's expression became one of knowing amusement.

"He is avoiding you, miko. He does not want to be confronted with his mistakes. He thinks you should not forgive him – and perhaps he is right."

* * *

><p>AN: The Last Stand of Kagome's Hope. Which will be crushed in...31. Poor Hope; should have stayed under the lid where it belonged...


	31. Chapter 31

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXI

Prompt From The Wanted! Challenge

_Dead or Alive _

Kagome stayed silent; how could she reply? She did not know herself if she could forgive Inuyasha; the more she learned, the worse her situation grew. Love could only do so much to salve her reason; it was tantamount to slavery, what Inuyasha had done to her!

And there was Sesshomaru, making everything so much worse:

"Miko, did Inuyasha _ask_ you if you would be his mate? Did he tell you that it meant the bonding of his youki, _my_ youki, to your life?"

Her throat tightened.

"Did he tell you the responsibilities that have become yours? I am the Lord of the West. If I am insulted, will you defend me? If there is war, will you fight beside me? If I have victory, will you stand with me?"

"Miko, if all is lost, and my power fades, and my enemies conquer the lands of my ancestors and seal me in darkness, will you take your own life as honor demands, and paint the faces of your children with blood and vengeance? Or will you be pleased as a prize, one of the spoils of war, to live as a gilded treasure until the end of your days?"

Kagome stared, and still said nothing.

"Do you understand? If you cannot do these things the bond you have been subjected to will destroy you. When the time comes, it will burn you with my power, whether I will it or not. It will leave you an empty husk, tear your soul from your flesh."

A hiccup of hysterical laughter escaped her mouth.

"Is that all?"

His eyes were hard.

"How will you assert your own will, miko, _woman_ - how will you fight against the youki that infects you? Perhaps if you had only my brother to contend with, your soul might be strong enough. _He_ is half human. But I -"

He leaned close to her again. She felt his breath against her lips.

"I am _not_. No youkai can stand against me; you, miko...you never had a chance. Inuyasha is not stupid enough to think he could ever make me submit, make me call _him _Alpha...and as long as you live, he will not even _try_ to kill me. If he succeeded, _you_ would die too."

Some savage feeling consumed his expression.

"Dead or alive, you are mine, miko."

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! Go Sesshomaru go! Explain how stupid Inuyasha has been! Really it's just a few scratches in the hole Inuyasha has already dug for himself, but...:P Onward!

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	32. Chapter 32

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXII

Prompt From The Three Hour Prompt Fest

_Sovereignty_

In that moment of strangeness, Kagome felt Sesshomaru's fingers slip away from her skin, a caress that lingered when he could have just pulled away.

He said he did not lie...but did that mean he was telling the truth? He said she was _his_, and for one moment she had found herself on the edge of believing that he wanted it that way – but that couldn't be true.

She was the one Inuyasha's choice had forced on him.

She _had_ been thinking that Inuyasha might be able to kill Sesshomaru, free her...but now it seemed that for her, it was life with Sesshomaru...or no life at all.

Slowly, as her thoughts recovered from the deluge of information, a thing occurred to her that stoked her anger to a higher flame. Because she loved Inuyasha did not mean that she would have been any happier to be bound to _him_ this way than to be bound to Sesshomaru. To be subject to his every desire – to be tied so tightly to his life that his death would kill her – _that_ was what Inuyasha wanted from her?

She had offered him her body.

He had taken her freedom instead.

* * *

><p>AN: Yay, more DSA! And Kagome finally notices that there would have been problems even without Sesshomaru! Oh, Inuyasha is so doomed...but at least he deserves it. Someone needs to paint ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES on Tetsusaiga in really big characters so he doesn't forget. 200 words!

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	33. Chapter 33

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXIII

Prompt From The Three Hour Prompt Fest

_Pugnacious _

Thoughtless as usual, suspecting only that with Sesshomaru had come danger, Inuyasha barreled through the forest towards the well, and stopped with Tetsusaiga in hand, staring at an odd tableau:

Sesshomaru was standing over Kagome with his sword drawn, but held loosely in one hand, his demeanor utterly without malice. And Kagome, her face dark with indecipherable thoughts, did indeed smell of blood – but not fear.

_Angry. She is...angry? What has he done!_

Inuyasha had come following blood scent, expecting danger. And instead...what was this? As was his wont in situations he did not understand, Inuyasha turned to violence.

"What has he done to you, Kagome? You're hurt -"

He stepped between them, pushing Kagome behind him with one hand, staring at his brother with a red flicker in his eyes. Kagome touched her throat, felt stickiness and stinging. Sesshomaru's sword, or perhaps his claws, had nicked her.

"He hasn't done anything! We've been talking – oh. _Oh -_"

A wave of youki burst from Sesshomaru, slid over Kagome's skin and shook Inuyasha where he was standing.

Sesshomaru's power was like his hands – brutal and knowing. It had touched her with a force she could not resist, terrifying and tempting.

"You will step away from my mate, Inuyasha."

Her heart beat faster in her chest. She sensed carnage, coming at the speed of a rushing train, as Inuyasha snarled his response.

"From _your _mate- !"

It was not Sesshomaru who interrupted him, but _Kagome_. She spoke half from real anger...and half seeking to save his life.

"Yes! _His_, Inuyasha! You made it that way! Are you going to tell me about that, now? About what you've done?"

* * *

><p>AN: Ah...I can't leave you hanging like that, now can I? :P More...almost immediately!

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	34. Chapter 34

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXIV

Prompt From The Three Hour Prompt Fest

_Undisclosed_

Aware suddenly that Kagome's anger was for _him_, Inuyasha hesitated...and then plowed onward regardless. He had kept his fury too close, gorging it on promises of vengeance. His thoughts were so open on his face that Sesshomaru could read them at a distance, effortlessly.

"What _I've_ done? _You_ came to _me_ – you wanted me, you said. And you were _mine, _until _he_ came. Kagome...you're not youkai. I'm not, either...not really, but some things I have always known. Once, _he_ told me there were three things I couldn't do if I wanted my life. The most important was not to...take a mate."

He swallowed; his ears drooped.

"But I _did_. That night when you...that night, the mark I gave you, the pain you felt - that was the bonding of a mate, Kagome. I wasn't intending to do it, I didn't mean to, but there is a demon in me I can't deny. I marked you mine, and I intended to keep you, but -"

He ignored the fire growing in Kagome's eyes.

"But I _can't_. Even if I could defeat him, he would never submit. He would die first, just to spite me. I would have to _kill_ him."

"Then kill him!"

She spoke despite the flare of pain that attacked her at such open betrayal of her bond – despite Sesshomaru's _explanation._

He was her enemy, her _enemy_! An enemy who called her mate – but that was a _lie_, a lie just like -

"And kill you, too?"

Darkness stuttered in her gaze.

"What – what?"

"If he -"

Inuyasha swallowed hard.

"If he dies, Kagome – "

Eyes wide at this confirmation, Kagome didn't need for him to continue, but Inuyasha couldn't stop.

"If he dies, then so do _you_."

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! Swoosh! Inuyasha now thinks he has told Kagome what she wanted to know...except he is wrong. And Sesshomaru already told her all that – and now she knows he wasn't lying to her. Oops, Inuyasha. Oops.

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	35. Chapter 35

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXV

Prompt From The Three Hour Prompt Fest

_Silence_

Quiet filled her; pure, deep, still. Inuyasha's words echoed in her soul. He knew. He _knew_. He had _always known_. Had feared _exactly_ _this_ -

And had said nothing.

She felt betrayed, and she felt anger, and she felt pain. Felt her love splintering under the pressure of her doubts. How could someone who loved her do so much to hurt her? Hadn't her mother always said love _never_ allowed for that?

_How?_

Tears ran from her wide open eyes in twin streams; she felt hands on her shoulders. Cool hands; demon hands.

_Sesshomaru_.

She turned and cried against his chest.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words of silence. Mmm...Inuyasha's Doom in T minus as many minutes as it takes me to finish the next bit. :D

Please Review!


	36. Chapter 36

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXVI

Prompt From The Three Hour Prompt Fest

_Reject_

From any other person, Sesshomaru would not have accepted such behavior. Even Rin knew better than to seek _comfort_ from him...or at least he hoped she did.

But this miko...in the moment she turned to him, the expression on Inuyasha's face was too precious to lose for the sake of bruised dignity. To see Kagome willingly turn to Sesshomaru – to _Sesshomaru_, and not to him – had hurt Inuyasha. It was a visible betrayal that he just couldn't understand.

Sesshomaru saw the instant his brother broke, the instant his fury leapt all boundaries of control and took over.

"What are you doing, Kagome? What are you doing? I know you had no choice but to go to him, I know that it would have killed you – but – but you don't need to be with him now! You shouldn't go to _him_ – why would you go to him?"

Inuyasha's face grew ugly with agony.

"Is this what you were waiting for? - all this time!"

All the words were wrong; all of them. They were, individually and together, the worst things he could have said; rejection, of the worst kind.

Hearing them, Sesshomaru smiled.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words of Inuyasha's big mouth...and also Sesshomaru being sneakily evil. I dedicate this chapter to...r0o! Who sent me a picture! Squee!


	37. Chapter 37

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXVII

Prompt From The Three Hour Prompt Fest

_Aftermath_

In the face of the riot of feelings Kagome already bore toward him, Inuyasha's accusation – as if she had _wanted_ this! - served only to focus her rage. It was not as if she could have turned to _him _for comfort!

"I wanted to be _yours_, Inuyasha! Yours, and not his – but why should you care? _You_ just finished telling me that you had no intention of – that you...that you didn't _mean_ to take me – _damn_ you, Inuyasha!"

"But – Kagome – I couldn't -"

"Couldn't have a _mate_? But I don't _want _to be your mate! I wanted - I wanted to be your _wife_. But you never asked; you never even warned me it could happen!"

She took a deep, shuddering breath.

"I came to the past for _you_, Inuyasha. You knew that; I know you did. Why did you let me do it if you never meant to have me?"

And she shouted something then that came close to silencing him forever.

"I would rather belong to Sesshomaru than to _no one_! I would rather be touched by him than never touched at all!"

He backed away, horrified.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! Ahh yes...the truth is coming out now. And how nice for Sesshomaru to know that she isn't _completely_ unwilling! More _very_ later tonight perhaps, but I think I'm drabbled out for today; time for Bloodlust!

Please Review!


	38. Chapter 38

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Yellow Rose: Jealousy_

Sesshomaru was pleased with what he had accomplished. The rift between his miko and Inuyasha was wider than he expected; whatever feelings held them together, their trust was a fragile, delicate web.

His coming had been the coming of a knife, a sword, sweeping through that web, dispersing it; perhaps forever.

At the same time, he could not help but feel...irritated. The miko – she would rather have him than no one; there was more insult than compliment in that.

She _still _would have preferred Inuyasha.

Considering his brother's recent display of stupidity, he found himself more aggravated than he might have been. He would _make_ her want him. There was power at his disposal – power in the bond between them.

If she had been youkai, anything he tried would have been like a faint caress; a reminder of his distant presence. If she had been youkai, the barrier of her own power would have set limits on how far his will could breach her intentions...but she was human.

He could afford to be more subtle than he had been the first time; he had no need to command her. She was already his.

He would send her..._sensation_.

* * *

><p>AN: Yes...yes he will. Lemony bits coming up...


	39. Chapter 39

Drabble Collection Alpha

XXXIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Wormwood: Torment of Love_

Sesshomaru's departure had been without further cutting words; perhaps he had seen that they were unnecessary. Inuyasha stayed very still, staring at Kagome with wide eyes, unable to form thoughts or the words to voice them.

Kagome sank down to her knees by the well, one hand on the lip of it, her thoughts ranging back, back...not that long ago, she had been on the edge of going to Inuyasha, of forgiving him, of trying to start over.

Now she didn't know what to do. She had shocked herself with her own words, though not nearly as much as she had shocked Inuyasha. If she was honest with herself, she had suspected, always, that there might be some very strange things about having a demon for a lover, a husband – and that it might be stranger still because Inuyasha was "betwixt and between", neither Inu nor human.

In her deepest and most private thoughts, remembering the pleasure Sesshomaru had taught her body, remembering the sight of him, controlled by desire for her – in _those_ thoughts, Kagome considered that if she had _known_, in advance, what the results of being Inuyasha's mate would be -

She _might_ have consented – _might_ have agreed to _belong_ to both of them...or at least, to belong to Inuyasha and be Sesshomaru's one-time lover.

Now, though...

Her emotions were confused; it was hard to separate what she wanted for herself and her life, her future, from what her _body_ desired, betrayer that it was – and what her _heart_ insisted, worse betrayer still.

As the dark fell, Inuyasha approached Kagome cautiously, one eye on her tears and one eye on the well behind her.

"Kagome – Kagome, I'm sorry. I never thought – you know I' m not good at...I just don't understand, Kagome. Please...come back with me to the village, Kagome? Please?"

Slowly, very slowly, her head raised; her eyes focused on him.

"You...want me still? Even after what I said?"

He swallowed, looked aside.

"Did you...did you mean it, Kagome?"

His eyes darted back to her, and he held her gaze. Her mouth opened, then closed...and then she shrugged.

"Yes. I meant it."

He blinked quickly, fisted his hands.

"Why? _Why_?"

Bemused, confused but coming to clarity with her own words, Kagome spoke.

"I spent so much time being second best for you, Inuyasha; so much time waiting...and now, what you've told me...I don't know what you were thinking; I don't know if you thought I would be willing to wait forever, but I'm not, Inuyasha. You said it yourself; I'm only human. I...I only have so long to live, so few years, in the greater scheme of things."

She fixed him with a level gaze.

"I wanted to spend them with you. But you...you don't really know what you want, do you?"

"Kagome! I want – I want _you_. A life with you! But I – there are parts of myself I can't control. That's...that's why you're my _mate_. And not my w-wife. Mate I _know_. It's...part of me. Instinct. But what is a wife? Something human -"

Kagome shook her head, and stood, silencing him.

"I know, Inuyasha. I know. But...it's too late now. For any of that. You made me your mate...and that made me Sesshomaru's. He's told me my obligations – what is required of me as his mate – and the consequences, if I don't..._obey_."

Kagome shrugged again and turned to the path that led to the village.

"Let's go. It's getting late; and I'm tired."

* * *

><p>AN: Aha! I just realized that technically the last chapter does NOT count as part of Lady Midnight's challenge...too few words. This one, however, is 600 words! And therefore does count, as well as setting a new Alpha record :P

Please Review!


	40. Chapter 40

Drabble Collection Alpha

XL

Prompt From GMDDN: #6

_Distress_

There was a hot pulse at her throat; her fingers were lost in her own wetness, her mouth open, muttering - small sounds, utterly desirous. She was asleep, but there was darkness in her dreams, a fuzzy view. She still knew who it was; there wasn't even a moment of doubt.

_(He sank his teeth deep into her throat, overwriting the mark that had first been put there, overriding it. Youki flushed through Kagome, setting all her nerves on fire; first the terrible pain and then, just as terrible, the wracking, razor-edged pleasure.)_

Watching her, wakened by her, no longer sleeping, Inuyasha felt a deep, angry burn grow darker. _Before_, he might have woken her, helped her in her..._distress_. But now – now that she had been to his brother, now that she had fulfilled that bond – now that he had heard that most terrible admission –

He hated to admit it to himself, but he did not know who she was dreaming about; did not know who it was that she was...wanting.

_Is it me? Is it me she wants, or...or is it **him**?_

He hated that question, _hated it_. She had been his Kagome, his, the one who was everything to him - and now...

_And now..._

She was moaning, turning under her own hands - and the way she was tugging on that soft flesh, her fingers, small, thin, so deep; her thumb, quick, rough, back and forth, her hips moving with it, her hair lashing against her pillow -

Inuyasha fled the house, ran, ran as fast and as far as he could. It was good, that he left - that he could not hear the ragged whisper that left her lips when she shuddered, and her dream faded away into darkness.

"_Se...ssho...maru..._"

* * *

><p>AN: Yep...lemony bits. Mwaha.

Please Review!


	41. Chapter 41

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Monkshood: Beware, A Deadly Foe Is Near_

Kagome woke confused . Inuyasha had been in the house with her when she went to sleep; not beside her, but leaning against the wall as was his habit.

Now she was alone; her skin was tingling and the mark at her throat was flushed and dark.

Involuntarily, she glanced around, then closed her eyes and reached out with her miko senses..._yes. _He was there, just within the range of her power.

_Sesshomaru_...

The thought of his name brought back the memory of her dream – the memory of the events that had _become_ the dream.

With memory came desire.

* * *

><p>AN: Technically doesn't fit Lady Midnight's challenge once again, because it is only...100 words. :P But Ah, how I love the flower prompts idea! Sorry I didn't get these up last night; I fell asleep. But I did post...what, 10 chapters yesterday? :P This chapter is for skitchell! Yay!

Please Review!


	42. Chapter 42

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Azalea: Fragile Passion_

Because she had nothing else to do, because she had nothing more to lose, Kagome decided to go out for a walk. She told herself that the heat of her body would cool if she just forgot about it...but it was a lie. She told herself she was not looking for anything – or _anyone_ –

That was a lie, too.

Inevitably, as she had not-been hoping for, Kagome found Sesshomaru. He was not far from the little clearing near the well where she had found him yesterday; she wondered idly why he was staying nearby...and then he stepped close to her and stared down into her eyes.

"You have come to me, mate? Why?"

He spoke as if he had not been the one responsible for her feelings; he spoke as if her presence was a complete surprise to him, as though he had not spent the night touching her with power.

His voice, his closeness, made her feel faint...and aroused.

He smiled, scenting her, and then leaned down further and kissed her. He kissed her the way _she _had kissed _him_ – while he was loving her; while she was full of the new bond and its workings – and then he pulled away.

His hands wandered over her body, stealing intimate secrets. Trembling, Kagome stared up at him and had to swallow twice before she could speak. His youki pressed down on her like a living weight.

"Sesshomaru, you -"

She took a deep breath.

"What do you want?"

Fear of his _want_ and her own desire made her voice ragged, soft. His eyes narrowed, but he said nothing, continued to look down at her...to touch her, his claws leaving raised red scratches on her skin, puckered lines and tears in the fabric of her clothes.

"What do you want from me!"

He stared at her, contemplating. What _did _he want from her? He knew, though, that it was a question with a simple answer.

"_Everything_. I want –_ everything_."

"But – you – you don't _need_ to..."

"No. I don't _need_ to."

He left anything else unsaid, reached out and slipped his fingers through the softness of her hair, across her cheek. His hands found her nipples and pulled on them, slipped under her shirt and made her gasp.

Delicately he awoke her passion.

This time she did not resist.

* * *

><p>AN: Dun dun dun! More arrives, and I dedicate it to Randomfan! For...being random, and a fan! :D I'm not sure if I should continue this into full blown smut, like the dirty part of my mind is telling me to...or just pick up the next chapter from actual _plot_. Oh well. I'm losing my internet again...but...if I get it back there may be more. There is always hope! (Oh yeah; 400 words! Woot!) (No, really, it's smut...because this A/N is from a long time ago and the me of now knows I already wrote it :P)

Please Review! :D


	43. Chapter 43

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Apple Blossom: Temptation_

She told herself that resistance would have been purposeless; she had learned already and well the consequences of fighting him.

_Agony_.

But she was too honest with herself not to recognize that it was not the fear of pain that was moving her; it was her own lust. As wrong as it seemed, as wrong as she _knew_ it was -

She _wanted_ him. He had touched her, from need and from desire; he had saved her life, no matter how she had felt about it at the time. She found him attractive in a way that Inuyasha was not. Inuyasha stirred caring in her, attentive warmth, but Sesshomaru awoke _desire_, just by his presence, by _his_ obvious want -

His hands were everywhere. He was _teasing_ her, toying with the tight peaks of her nipples through her clothes - until, flushed scarlet, Kagome made a choice.

Eyes closed against what she was doing, she raised trembling fingers to the buttons of her shirt and undid them one by one.

Sesshomaru paused, his eyes intent on her.

Kagome shrugged out of her shirt and reached behind her to undo the clasp of her bra. It fell on top of her shirt, and she shivered slightly, had to force her arms not to come up across her chest. Instead, her fingers found the zipper of her skirt and pulled. She stood still and let the fabric slide down her legs and pool around her feet on the ground.

Sesshomaru reached forward, his voice questioning.

"This...what is this?"

His claws caught at the lace band of her panties, and pulled them just so, watched the white fabric slip between the damp lips of her sex. Kagome was unaccountably sensitive. The lace and elastic rubbed against the bundle of nerves at her core, and she moaned.

Interested by her reaction, Sesshomaru twitched his fingers again. Again, she moaned.

"You wear such things, miko? Why?"

It took her a moment to answer, blushing and stuttering.

"They're – they're just underwear! You're not supposed – oh..._oh! - _not supposed to do _that_ -"

She stumbled, and he caught her, and then gestured at the scrap of fabric drawn up between her thighs.

"Off with it, miko."

Avoiding his eyes, Kagome rested her fingers on the band at her waist and began to take them off; slowly.

That was, perhaps, a mistake.

* * *

><p>AN: And...since everyone really wants it, smutsmutsmut! :D More...soon. Also smut! Aren't I nice, posting so quickly!

Please Review!


	44. Chapter 44

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Sweetpea: Blissful Pleasure_

Sesshomaru watched her for a moment – bending, light and shadow shifting on her skin - and then lifted her with one hand and pinned her to the nearest tree. Kagome let out a startledyelp, and then wriggled for a moment, but that was _definitely_ a mistake. The bark scratched her back – and Sesshomaru's gaze, which had been amused, perhaps desirous, became _hungry_.

He drew the sodden scrap of lace and cotton down from her knees and over her feet and dropped it...and then looked _up_ at her. She saw then where she was, and wondered in a small corner of her mind that was not overloaded by sensation if Sesshomaru had done this on purpose or if it was the kami, that liked to be cruel -

Sesshomaru had pinned her against the Goshinboku, almost exactly where Inuyasha had once been pinned. But her mind had no time to process this, because almost immediately he said something terrible and wonderful which he had said to her once before.

"Shall I taste you, miko?"

She did not have time to say _yes_ or _no, _because his mouth was already on her. And _oh -_

So _hot_. Tongue, soft, _rough_, all over – slow, his lapping, _tasting_ her -

She closed her eyes; she could not look down at him.

The torment of his so-slow movements became more purposeful, faster movements, his tongue inside her and then again – _torment. _

Slowly, he slid his fingers inside her, as if testing her readiness, her heat; Sesshomaru felt the rippling contraction of muscles, the tenseness of her need, and almost, _almost _ groaned...but instead he sped the motion of his tongue.

Kagome let out a gasping, screaming cry. Heat flooded up from her toes, concentrated beneath that hot, rough motion, and burst. Her fingers came down and tightened in his hair, her nails pressing into his scalp, holding him still.

Slowly, she panted and began to wriggle away from his tongue, trying to escape, too sensitive for so much stimulation – but he wouldn't stop. He took the musky sweetness of her pleasure onto his tongue, and enjoyed his view of her flushed and writhing form.

When she finally began to settle into her pleasure again, he pulled away, and lifted her down, and stood her before him on trembling legs.

"My clothes, miko. Unless now, you wish to run?"

* * *

><p>AN: Eeeheehee. More smut. And naked Sesshomaru...who Kagome damn well better look at this time. :P 400 words again...and onward!

Please Review!


	45. Chapter 45

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLV

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

H: Hamartiology:_ the study of sin_

He would not show it – _never_ - but Sesshomaru was pleased, _more_ than pleased, that the little miko had come back to him; that his gentle manipulation had been so successful. He did not know about the dream that had been wrought on her, nor the pleasure she had wrought on herself in the wake of it – but it didn't matter. He had her here, now, willing...trembling with want.

He mocked her with her submission, with the ease of his victory over her, but at the same time he could not deny that he desired her..._greatly_. The taste of her body was as exotic as he had anticipated from her scent; she was open in her pleasure like no female he had ever seen...so many words, so many sounds.

She did not run; almost eagerly, her hands reached out for the sash belting his kimono; not quite an obi, and tied with an unusual knot. For a moment, she struggled with it, and then he laid his hands over hers – not untying it himself, but showing her how.

Her fingers were lithe and quick, and she learned quickly – and quickly, she darted around him, removing layers, her movements a little slower, more trembling in them, as she reached his kosode...and then pulled it away, left him in just his loincloth.

As if mesmerized, she stared at him, so pale, his nipples dark against his skin...all flat planes and hard muscles. She couldn't help herself, had to reach out and touch, and almost let out a moan of pleasure -his skin was so smooth, so soft - but _hot_. Even touching him was sensuous.

Kagome found herself following her fingers, letting them lead her around his body, touching his chest, the lean muscles in his abdomen...his hips, branded with twin stripes of magenta-crimson, thicker but just as delicate as those on his cheeks.

Still she let her fingers lead her, tracing those marks and across the firm flesh of his lower back, the curve of his buttocks– and up again, across his shoulders, more ripples of muscle that twitched under her touch. She ran her fingers through his hair...

And then she was in front of him again, watching a red flicker in his eyes, the hungry expression more obvious in his face than before.

Kagome shivered, _feeling_ the force of his lust focused in her direction.

* * *

><p>AN: This is not precisely smut, but...yummy! Naked Sesshomaru! Thanks goes to r0o for all her delicious smuts, which make for tasty inspiration! I think there is one more chapter of lemony goodness...maybe two. Woo for demon stamina!

Please Review!


	46. Chapter 46

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Tulip: Symbol of the Perfect Lover_

"You are not finished, mate."

Sesshomaru's voice was low. Another shiver shook Kagome, and she stepped close, brought her hands to the tie of his loincloth and undid the single fastening.

He stood naked in front of her, and this time she did not restrain her eyes...or her hands.

She felt an unexpected pulse of arousal when she touched him and he let out a breath, not quite a moan. Slim, delicate fingers stroked him, until he let out a growl and reached for her, lifted her only to lay her on the moss. He reached down, ran his claws over the smooth skin of her breasts, her belly...down, until he could wrap his fingers around the little hardness in her softest flesh, tug it back and forth -

He was pleased when she made sounds again, soft and then louder. Kagome heard herself begging -_ between your - fingers – yes – oh! _

A bright flushed colored her whole body, but that did not stop her from enjoying it when he obeyed her gasping desire; his fingers squeezed and pulled and rolled back and forth that single focus of pleasure until she was begging him to take her –

And slowly, inch by inch, unhurried by her moans and the tightness of her legs around his hips, Sesshomaru _did _take her...but it was different this time.

Part of her was expecting what had happened before – but there was no mating urge to drive him this time, nothing but his own pleasure, and..._hers_. That he took such care with her, seeking the places that inflamed her desire, obeying her cries, her moans – it was incredibly arousing. It seemed to matter to him that she _want_ him; he had taunted her a little, reminding her that she had denied him before -

But none of that mattered now. Not now, when she could slide her legs up his back, and lift her hips to the strong, steady thrusts that drove him into her with increasing force – but never too much, never enough to hurt her – as if he had judged, precisely and perfectly, the limits of her human tolerances.

For a moment, he stopped, paused just barely inside her, heat and wetness quivering around him. Her fingers reached for his shoulders and caught in his hair; he felt her _squeezing_ him, muscles tightening and releasing, her movements as she tried to gain leverage -

He lifted one of her legs, and turned her slightly, and then resumed his pounding rhythm, bent closer to her now, his mouth on her breasts, her nipples.

A growl, a groan, built in his chest and flooded out of him. She was moving under him, lifting her hips to his every movement, tightening around him – her fingers clawed at his shoulders, his back. With a howl, he let himself go, giving over to the urge of his own pleasure, and felt his miko shuddering under him, responding to the hot rush inside her.

* * *

><p>AN: ! Phew. 500 more words of smut! Next is some slight angstyness, because of twit!Inuyasha...and then...I think some plot, before more smut! :D

Please Review!


	47. Chapter 47

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Petunia: Resentment; Anger_

Sesshomaru's howl and Kagome's cries had been heard by at least one set of attentive ears. In the village, on the roof of Kaede's hut where he had spent many lonely days and nights, Inuyasha cringed, and squeezed his eyes shut tight, and wished he could as easily close off his ears.

Eventually there was quiet again, and Inuyasha unclenched his hands from the tight fists they had become.

_How could you do it, Kagome? How could you go to him?_

He had watched her, wandering in the early morning light, her movements furtive; he had watched her, until she disappeared into the trees, and then had approached the forest himself with half-formed intentions; to go after her, to protect her -

And then had come those _sounds, a_nswering the question he had asked himself when he had woken to find her – to find her -

Well, now he knew. Whatever she had said about _not wanting_ – that had obviously not been true. And how could he blame her? Who would choose him, over Sesshomaru? Sesshomaru, who was Lord of the Western Lands – a true demon, fully youkai...Alpha. The stronger one; he knew that now as he had always known it. Tetsusaiga had brought him a single victory, born of surprise and the fledgling feelings he had nurtured for Kagome; he did not think it would do so again.

He had seen over Kagome's shoulder, the moment she returned and Sesshomaru had made clear his position, his _desire_, that his brother intended to wound him, to _break_ him.

Resentful – of Sesshomaru, of _Kagome_ – angry that his fate seemed to be one long unhappiness, Inuyasha's thoughts turned inward, trying to understand, to figure out where it had all gone wrong. Scowling, he could think of only one moment; one moment, that, had it not happened – had it happened differently - would have changed everything.

And it was _her _fault. It was all her fault! The shattering of the jewel; many lost battles; his own _pointless _feelings and desires...even his loss of Kikyou!

Kagome had said she was prepared to stay with him, not asking more than he was willing to give. She had _promised_ – but how quick she was to forget!

He stared at the edge of the forest, and imagined he could hear her laughing.

His eyes burned with tears that he refused to shed.

* * *

><p>AN: Ah Inuyasha – bad thoughts, bad thoughts! Ah well. Sorry this took a few days, but its been too hot for me to venture into the living room where internet is...been staying in my room, where the AC is. But since I have today off, I think I'll spend it writing more stuff! Yay! Stuff!

Please Review!


	48. Chapter 48

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Aster: Daintiness, Contentment, Unpredictability_

Perhaps because her sleep had been less than restful, Kagome was content to doze on the moss where Sesshomaru's kosode had fallen. Her head was pillowed on her arm, her legs tangled in his sash and her feet just touching one of his ankles.

Sesshomaru sat, dressed now in his loincloth, with his back against the tree. He watched Kagome sleep, thinking, planning. Petals and leaves drifted down occasionally, passing by his vision, alighting on the gnarled roots of the tree and on her skin.

He was not done with her, not yet sated...but he had reminded himself that she was human, and therefore fragile. It was obvious; once the flush had faded from her skin it had left many thin scratches behind, adding to the slightly deeper marks that he had left on her the first time.

As he watched her she turned from her back to her side, making an uncomfortable noise as she did so. He was surprised to see blood on her back, a petal stuck to a wet red drop. Carefully, he pushed himself away from the tree, knelt beside her, and plucked it away.

Another drop of blood welled up and ran down her back. Sesshomaru frowned at it; it was easier to hurt her than he had thought. He remembered lifting her, and how she had wriggled against the tree; had she cut herself then? He glared at the tree as if it was somehow at fault, and then looked down at Kagome.

_This is foolishness. My mate, and I am rutting with her in the woods? My mate - and that pale skin...I do not want it marred with blood._

As soon as the thought occurred to him, he stood, and began to pull on his clothes. Thoughts were useless, after all, unless one acted on them.

But he _hesitated_ as he began to dress, looking down at her, vulnerable...how trusting she was, to think that he would not harm her now – when perhaps now would be the best time. Trusting...

He scowled, and returned to where he had been sitting, and leaned back against the tree.

Her trust was a burden on his honor...and more than that, as he sat, staring at her, he recognized that he had no real desire to hurt her. He would – if it was necessary. But he did not _want _to.

_When did that happen?_

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! Yay! This chapter is dedicated to forfirith, and the Lemon Ice Cream of Smut! More soon; I think one more chapter, and then lemony goodness again :laughs: Now that I started I can't help myself!

Please Review!


	49. Chapter 49

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Mimosa: Sensitivity_

As he watched her, Sesshomaru came to the conclusion that he could not take her _away_ any more than he could take her _life_; not without her consent. She was fierce, this miko; he knew already that she would not agree to be caged.

He would not be able to keep her against her will without being forced to kill her, and he was not a person who did _anything_ he did not want. Still...lust was one thing, and one thing only. He could not forget that she had fought against him; there was danger in that. She might fight against him again.

In one sense her fearlessness was pleasing...attractive. Even among youkai, he had never before met a female who did not fear him, aside from his own mother.

And even she...even _she_ sometimes looked askance at him, calculating..._apprehensive_.

It was fear that led to violence, and if his miko was _not_ afraid...if she was no longer defending Inuyasha – did she have a reason to try for his life? Then again, she _was _a miko; a holy being, and he was youkai.

For a moment he paused in his thoughts and looked at her, eyes narrow. Could it be a ploy? Her willingness...

_No. Not her. Not **my** miko. That kind of cunning is not in her. And if she did not want me **before**..._

His lips curled upward just the slightest bit, remembering how she had begged him to touch her.

Kagome turned then, yawning; he watched the pinkness of her mouth open and close, the fall of her hair, the way the shaft of sunlight she lay in turned her pink nipples rosy -

And forgot, for the moment, all thoughts of bringing her elsewhere, and all thoughts of death. Later, there would be time for beds and furs and silks; he would make force unnecessary - he would seduce her.

Later, he would ornament her, bedazzle her, see how her beauty appeared reflected in the facets of many jewels.

_Later_.

Now, he wanted to see if her _enthusiasm_ was the same as before her nap.

He woke her with a riot of sensations; his mouth and his tongue on her nipples, one and then the other - his fingers plying themselves against sensitive and swollen flesh the way he knew she liked.

She moaned, and blinked twice, and then gasped as a sweet soreness became pleasure.

* * *

><p>AN: Hmm...the smut! It was supposed to start NEXT chapter...but then...oh well. This would've been up last night but I burned my space bar thumb while I was cooking, and for some reason I CAN'T use the other one. Weird, right? So it may take me a bit before I get the next one edited...and also I've been neglecting Bloodlust :P But more soon!

Please Review!


	50. Chapter 50

Drabble Collection Alpha

L

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Forsythia: Anticipation_

Hardness prodded at wet softness, then sank deep. Sesshomaru saw Kagome wince, and then turn a little and let out a pleased, sharp sigh.

"So much..._Se-ssho-maru – oh..."_

He bent very close to her, allowed her to feel the whole length of him pressed inside her, and spoke close to her ear.

"Do you think you are dreaming still? Wake up, little miko."

His tongue darted out, traced the curve of her ear. While she gasped and stuttered herself into wakefulness, he found a rhythm that pleased him...and her, apparently. He watched her sleepy expression become flushed and straining; listened to the flood of words and syllables that seemed to grow the more he thrust into her -

"Harder, harder, harder, harder- _yes_, _please more, I -_"

And -

"D-don't don't _don't_ _stop_ -"

Her fingers left her nipples and crawled down her body, focused on her own pleasure. For a moment he slowed, despite her moan of protest and the twisting of her hips, and watched her fingers work the sensitive nub that he had teased...and realized that she was teasing _herself_, one finger moving in slow circles now, shudders moving through her body like ripples on water.

A wicked, wicked smile crossed Sesshomaru's face, but Kagome was too lost in her body to notice. Still watching her, Sesshomaru increased the pace of his thrusts. It was not long before her moans changed tone, became sharper, higher.

"So _close -_"

He stopped.

She almost screamed.

Slowly, delicately, he spread apart her wet lips and ran one claw over the engorged red pearl he exposed. Something between a moan and a cry leapt out of her mouth.

"You are, aren't you? Little miko -"

Again, he touched her, this time with the pad of his thumb, rubbing the same slow circles he had seen her own fingers moving in. Her legs scrabbled at his back, and then tightened, pulling him completely into her. Her body squeezed him tightly, and did not let go – but he was far, far stronger than she was, and she could not stop him when he took her hands into his hands and pinned them – could only submit to his sudden and pounding thrusts. He wrenched her orgasm from her, so that she was quivering uncontrollably beneath him...but after a moment of panting she wriggled, and he saw in her eyes that she was unsatisfied.

Again he smiled a wicked, wicked smile, and this time she could _see_ it. He reached down to stroke her as he had before, and felt her body regain its former tightness almost immediately, but there was more struggling in her this time, a more frantic desire.

"You are so very sensitive – you want _this_ pleasure?"

She hesitated for only a moment.

"Yes – yes, _yes_, I do, _oh_ – I do -"

Her hips moved upward, seeking more pressure, more something, more _anything_ than that terrible slow teasing movement of his thumb-

And again he stopped.

She could not help but stare at his erection as he pulled away from her, glistening wet – her wetness. Her body felt empty, _needy_, after so much teasing.

"If _that_ is the pleasure you want, you can give it to yourself. I will sit here, and watch you."

She knew immediately what he meant, and flushed red.

"I – I – can't -"

His obvious amusement silenced her.

"Can't? Why is it can't _now_, little miko, and not when I am inside you?"

She could say _nothing_ to that.

* * *

><p>AN: Eeeheehee. 600 words of Kagome In Sexual Torment. But who wouldn't love to be tormented by Sesshomaru like _that_? Mwaha. The Lemon Ice Cream is EVIL! (in the Best Way). There is...more smut! And then Inuyasha, showing up all angry-like. But that will be tomorrow, when I have band-aids for my thumb. Damn you thumb! I thought I had conquered you, and then - :sigh:

Please Review!


	51. Chapter 51

Drabble Collection Alpha

LI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Heather_: _Admiration, Solitude_

Slowly, very, _very_ slowly, Kagome's hands crept down her body again while Sesshomaru stared with that hungry expression. His eyes followed her fingers as they slipped into wetness and unerringly moved towards that most sensitive spot. He watched the deepening flush that crept up her thighs and across her breasts; her embarrassment remained obvious - her want even more so.

Before long she was tense, shaking. The flickering movement of her fingers became frantic, her breathing quick and sharp – and then he reached out and pulled her hands away.

"Turn over."

She stared at him for a moment, hazy-eyed, her fingers reaching in his grasp. When she did not move fast enough, he moved _her_, lifted her as if she was weightless and turned her, pulled her up onto her knees. Moisture dripped from her sex to the mossy ground.

Swiftly, he entered her again, and let his eyes drift closed as he felt the squeezing pressure of her climax around him, the occasional brush from her busy fingertips. Her body gripped him tightly each time he withdrew, spurring his lust, until finally his hands tightened on her hips and his pace increased beyond anything humanly possible.

Kagome quivered, half in pleasure and half from exhaustion as Sesshomaru relented and took her again. _This_ way, he was so deep inside her it was painful...yet at the same time exquisite. She heard her own voice making a babble of sounds, wordless cries and moans.

Sesshomaru's low, low growl became a groan, and Kagome felt a _pulse_ inside her, heat as he drove into her with a few last thrusts.

In the moment after he pulled away from her, while she was still flushed and breathing hard, Sesshomaru looked down and brushed her hair away from her face.

"Miko..."

A/N: Yay! 300 words! Sorry that took so long; band-aids were useless and I had to wait for my thumb-blister to be gone. And now it is. Yay! More...immediately! :D

Please Review!


	52. Chapter 52

Drabble Collection Alpha

LII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Spider: Elope With Me_

Kagome waited for Sesshomaru to continue, shivering as he stroked her skin with careful claws, drawing patterns in paleness, careful not to cut her.

"Miko, I think it is time you come with me, and leave this place."

Kagome's mouth dropped open; the afterglow of her pleasure fell away.

"You want – I -"

She shuddered, remembering being shut in a room of total darkness; a room without a door, a room that allowed not even the _hope _of escape. Suspicious, fearful, Kagome shook her head.

"I don't think I _trust_ you enough, Sesshomaru. And I didn't think you..."

The rest of her sentence faded into silence. It would be stupid to finish it; he had made it quite obvious that for whatever reason, he _did_ want her.

_Probably only to hurt Inuyasha. But then...he's already **done** that._

Her thoughts paused for a moment, guilty.

_And so have I -_

As if he had been reading her thoughts, Sesshomaru spoke.

"You are _my_ mate, miko. No longer his. Do you think I will stay in these woods forever, waiting for you to slink away from my idiot brother? You seem intelligent enough; you should remember what I told you. I could _demand_ that you follow me; this discussion is unnecessary. It is for your sake that I am..._asking_."

She was startled, more than startled, by his _courtesy_.

_For **my**_ _sake?_

If he had demanded she go with him, she would have refused out of principle. Yet just because he had _asked_, she was half-inclined to say _yes_ – to go with him, and see what his life was like, see his home and if he acted differently there...

But she couldn't, curiosity notwithstanding. There was still _hope_ in her; hope for Inuyasha... hope keeping alive the embers of a once-bright flame of love.

"I can't – I can't just leave, Sesshomaru. I can't leave without trying..."

She shook her head and did not finish her sentence. Mentioning Inuyasha would only irritate him. She was surprised by his lack of reaction; surely he knew why she stayed?

She braced herself, expecting violence. Instead, he only shook his head, and then stood and held out a hand for her.

"Is there a place nearby to bathe, miko?"

Hesitating, she nodded, and then took his hand. He pulled, and she flew to her feet.

"Show me."

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words...and no, there is not going to be any bath smut; sorry :P I looked back and realized that there's been...what, ten chapters of smut? Twelve? Lemon bug got out of control! So, the happy interludes of smut are over for now...and bad things begin. Dun dun dun!

Please Review!


	53. Chapter 53

Drabble Collection Alpha

LIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Holly: Defense, Foresight, Strength_

Wrapped in Sesshomaru's haori for the second time, Kagome brought Sesshomaru to the pond at the bend of the river where she bathed most often. In the morning, the water was cold, but by this time of day it was usually warm enough to be pleasant. Sango had helped her to build a small stone cairn, in which they kept their soaps and shampoos.

Sesshomaru placed his folded clothes carefully aside, and then beckoned her to him, pulled his haori off her shoulders and then added that to the pile.

"Come, miko. You will bathe me. "

Kagome almost protested, but there was an electric tingle of youki on her skin, a warning that grew as she hesitated. Resigned, she opened her little store of supplies and pulled out soap, shampoo, bath oils...and then stopped, and put everything back except for a washcloth and her most scentless soap. Shippou had always protested at the stronger smelling stuff; Sesshomaru probably would, too.

She gestured for him to immerse himself as she approached, and waited, and then set to her _task. _It was more enjoyable than she had expected...and intimate, sensual. It was just as pleasant to touch him now as it had been before, when she was undressing him. She was careful, almost gentle, but thorough; her hands lingered, washing his flaccid length – and then she caught his smirk out of the corner of her eye and snatched her hands away.

"G-Go rinse, now!"

There was obvious amusement in his tone as he strode away from her into deeper water and vanished momentarily behind a projection of rock.

"Yes, mate."

But just as quickly as he had disappeared, he returned and moved to stand in front of her.

"Sesshomaru?"

Why was he _protecting_ her?

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words...and okay, so maybe a tiny_ hint_ of bath smut...I couldn't help myself :P Still two more chapters left that are done, so...onward!

Please Review!


	54. Chapter 54

Drabble Collection Alpha

LIV

_Marigold: Cruelty, Grief, Jealousy_

_Someone _was watching, as Kagome washed sweat and desire from Sesshomaru's skin.

_Someone _was very unhappy indeed.

Inuyasha had brought himself to the edge of accepting that he would have to deal with the intrusion of Sesshomaru into his life with Kagome, but he knew that _that_ had only been because she was unwilling. Because she hated being near Sesshomaru as much as he did; because she would return to him weeping after his brother summoned her.

It was selfish, and he knew it; but what other choice did he have? At least then he would have known she was still _his_.

In his heart, he knew he was wronging her, but as he watched her through the trees, her hands on his brother, the greater part of him _wanted_ to hurt her. To say something, _do_ something, that might give back to her even the smallest part of the agony he felt over her betrayal, her infidelity. How could he forgive her for going _willingly_ to the one person who had always wished him dead – more than anyone else?

He moved closer as Sesshomaru moved away. Her scent was a mixture of soap, and sex, and Sesshomaru; she was only up to her ankles in water, but her thighs were glistening with wetness. Her nipples stood out like little red berries, flushed and pointed; the sight of her was the most erotic thing he had ever seen.

But Inuyasha was brought to his senses quickly enough; Sesshomaru strode out from behind the edge of the rocky barrier and back through the water, his movements swift and sure. It was obvious that he had become aware of Inuyasha's presence; he pushed Kagome behind him, hiding her so that she could only peek from behind his arm. He seemed completely unconcerned with his own nudity; somehow, he was just as intimidating naked and lathered with soapsuds as he was with a sword in his hand.

Inuyasha backed away through the brush, trembling with anger and anxiety. He heard Kagome's voice questioning Sesshomaru.

The fact that she spoke only in her usual gentle tones, not dark with anger, not rich with fear - that only made everything worse.

Careful to move softly, he backed to the edge of his own range of hearing and listened.

"_Good-bye. I will return, miko. Eventually."_

Sesshomaru was not going to the village. Kagome would have to return alone.

And he would be waiting.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words...bad Inuyasha! Mwaha. Onward!

Please Review!


	55. Chapter 55

Drabble Collection Alpha

LV

Prompt From Lady

_White Rose: I Am Worthy Of You_

After Sesshomaru had left, Kagome let out a long sigh and sank down into the water, resting her head against her knees. She felt an enormous difference in her _self _the further Sesshomaru got from her; when she could no longer sense him, even with the furthest extension of her miko senses, she finally relaxed completely and pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes.

Since all of this began, she had _not _been herself. She had been trying – but Sesshomaru had an influence she apparently could not resist, and Inuyasha had been doing nothing but making her angrier and angrier...

And she was afraid to even go near Sango and Miroku half the time, unsure of what they would say to her, or what might happen if Sesshomaru was to come for her while she was with them. Shippou might be safe; Inuyasha's reaction was a given, and she had been avoiding him for _other_ reasons, anyway. But her human friends?

Even if she asked, it was unlikely Sesshomaru would offer any guarantees.

With a sigh, Kagome scrubbed herself down quickly, rinsed and then dried herself with a fluffy towel. She dressed quickly, shivering a little...sensing eyes on her. Suddenly she wished she had brought her bow with her – but Sesshomaru might not have taken too kindly to that.

There was a rustle – and then the bushes by the riverside parted to show Inuyasha standing there, staring at her. She relaxed, thinking only how glad she was that Sesshomaru had already had left – and then slowly, Inuyasha approached and began to circle her. Her eyes tracked his hands, one gripping the hilt of his sword tightly, the other an even tighter fist. For a moment, she felt a tingle of fear, and then banished it. This was Inuyasha; _Inuyasha_! He would never hurt her!

In the same moment the thought crossed her mind, he took the three steps necessary to bring him face to face with her, and reached out with his left hand to finger the collar of the shirt she was wearing. His right hand stayed on the hilt of Tetsusaiga; she felt again a shiver of fear.

"Inu...yasha?"

He said nothing, continued to circle her, taking in many details of her scent and appearance which proved, at least to him, that she hadn't _suffered_ for his brother's attentions.

Not at all.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! Poor Kagome. Poor Inuyasha. And soon, even poor Sesshomaru. Mwaha. Hints. And continuing on to more bad Inuyasha...

Please Review!


	56. Chapter 56

Drabble Collection Alpha

LVI

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

I: Ignescent: _capable of emitting sparks; of a volatile mood_

"Inuyasha, what..."

With a sudden movement, Inuyasha was _on_ her, tearing at her clothes. She tried to cover herself and that angered him more. Why would she hide herself from him, when she showed everything to Sesshomaru? Did she think to only give herself to _him_ now?

_Doesn't she remember whose mate she was meant to be? _

Inuyasha's obvious fury angered Kagome...and frightened her. She sensed _violence _in him, the likes of which she had not seen since she first freed him. And then his voice:

"_**Kagome**_."

The fear would not go away.

"Having _fun_, Kagome? _Enjoying_ yourself?"

She swallowed, took a deep breath.

"Or did my brother leave too soon for your taste?"

His tone became sharp, demanding.

"Why did you come out here, Kagome? What's _wrong_ with you?"

"What – what did you want me to do?"

Her words came through tears, but she didn't notice she was crying.

"Should I spend the rest of my life cowering in fear and denial and pain, Inuyasha? Is that what you want? For me to deny him completely, and _destroy myself_?"

His ears flattened as she screamed at him, but he did not step away. He caught her wrists in one hand, and held her arms extended. He looked down at her, brought his face close to hers, peered at her, almost smiling, and brought up one hand to touch her cheek.

"_Yes_."

He caressed her; she was stunned. And then he drew back his hand and slapped her, hard. The half-smile vanished from his face, and he howled.

"**Yes!** Anything, as long as you did not choose him – you're mine – _mine_, Kagome!"

He let go of her wrists and thrust her backward, so she stumbled and fell back on her knees. His claws cut through her shirt easily, shredded her bra and scratched her skin.

Kagome had only one, panicked thought.

_No – no! Not __**Inuyasha**__ – not like this - _

"Not like this – _not like __**this**_!"

A pink wave of power forced his hands away from her and tossed him back. In one smooth movement he stood, drew Tetsusaiga, and leveled the great fang at her body. A snarl twisted his features. His eyes were dark; empty.

"You promised you were mine. You promised to stand by me. You promised – promised – _promised _!"

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! And Inuyasha is...well, he's kind of going nuts now. From being a jealous prat mostly. But onwards! (The problem with Alpha is, once I start writing prompts, I can't _stop_. So _odd_. Oh well!)

Please Review!


	57. Chapter 57

Drabble Collection Alpha

LVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Fern: Magic, Fascination, Confidence, Shelter_

A feeling of terrible fear, of impending danger, startled Sesshomaru so much that he almost fell from the air. He turned immediately, staring back the way he had come. There was only one thing that could reach him this way.

_The miko. _

He took a deep breath, sorting scents. His mate - _Inuyasha_? She was afraid for her life!

_Inuyasha has attacked **her**?_ _**Why** would he go after **her**? That was not supposed to happen -_

Sesshomaru paused for less than a moment. There was only a single option. It would drain him, but even _his_ speed might not be enough to save her. That made his decision. She was _his _mate; Inuyasha had no right to her life, not anymore!

Power flooded from him, flowed along the bond to his miko...and erupted around her in a gold and glowing barrier.

The shock of so much youki moving through her left Kagome momentarily panting, and then unconscious – but the barrier of golden light held against Inuyasha's enraged first strike with Tetsusaiga, and against the second. On the third, it shivered, and might have failed -

But pale yellow lightning leapt up from the hilt of Tetsusaiga and crawled across Inuyasha's flesh. He _screamed_ – and dropped the sword.

And then Sesshomaru was there, red-eyed with exertion, standing over Kagome where she shivered on the ground. He scented blood from her, but not much, and the terrible fear that had alerted him to her danger.

He stared at Inuyasha, took in the blaze of his youki, his smoking hands; Tetsusaiga quiescent now on the ground.

He had succeeded beyond his wildest dreams; his brother had lost _everything_ now.

But _why_, then, did he feel no pleasure at his success?

Behind him, Kagome stirred and looked around her. He heard her weeping as it refreshed itself, and felt an uncomfortable _something_. He had meant to make the miko want him, to make Inuyasha push her away, make him _give _her to him in anguish and anger. But how _dare_ he strike at her in violence!

Once, just once, he had feared this red-eyed incarnation of Inuyasha. Since then, he had seen that it was just the Inu controlling him. Whatever logic and skill Inuyasha possessed, in these moments it was completely overwhelmed by the beast in his blood.

He ignored a wave of a weakness and sank his claws into Inuyasha's chest.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words...go Sesshomaru go! He messed up badly, and he knows it...but he also knows that Inuyasha has SO messed up worse.

Please Review!


	58. Chapter 58

Drabble Collection Alpha

LVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Geranium: Stupidity, Folly_

His wounds bubbled green with poison, but Inuyasha paid no attention. If he felt pain, he did not show it, but instead darted forward again, leaping into the air and striking down. His claws hit nothing; Sesshomaru had easily dodged.

Behind the two brothers, from her place on the ground, Kagome watched horrified, and then closed her eyes, clenched her fists. She stood slowly, and leaned against the nearest tree. She blinked, and then saw that in the time it had taken her to do so, Inuyasha had suffered another blow and was staggering to one side, blood flowing not just from his chest now but from the back of his head.

Sesshomaru did not bother drawing his sword; he was not sure it would be wise to expend the energy that would be necessary for the use of his blade, and with Inuyasha in this state it would not be required, anyway.

Instead, he followed Inuyasha's every movement with his claws, bleeding tender flesh, seeking to inflict pain rather than mortal injury. He gashed open his brother's abdomen, held back by inches from just gutting him, ending it all here -

And again, he struck deep into Inuyasha's chest, opening deeper wounds across the cuts that had given him first blood -

And again, even deeper still, seeking an old wound.

_Dokkasou_ sizzled on contact with blood and tattered tissue, and Sesshomaru finally pulled a scream out of his brother as his claws forced their way through his body and out.

He pulled away, shaking blood from his hand. Inuyasha was still standing, but barely. Crimson flooded from the hole in his body, streamed from him in many places; his face was still twisted in a terrible snarl. Sesshomaru stood silently, waiting for his brother to fall...and instead stepped aside when Inuyasha came at him again.

But he had forgotten Kagome. By moving away, he had left her vulnerable. He recognized his brother's new target at the last instant, and with a jerk, Sesshomaru caught Inuyasha by the collar of his haori, and then flung him back.

In the same moment, an upwelling of power moved in a surge from Kagome and divided between them. It battered at Sesshomaru, pushing him back - but it _burned_ Inuyasha, set his blood alight with purple flame. For a moment it blazed bright all around him, on his skin, in his hair -

And then, with one final, roaring howl, Inuyasha collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

><p>AN: Ahaha! For r0o, I dedicate this chapter – Inuyasha on FIYAH! I didn't burn off his peen with acid, but his hair is on PURPLE FIYAH! I mean, who doesn't love PURPLE FIYAH! :laugh: But seriously, poor Inuyasha. Two Almighty Kagome Bitch Slaps Of Power in one day...and then _Sesshomaru_...yeeowch!

Please Review!


	59. Chapter 59

Drabble Collection Alpha

LIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Pink Rose: Please Believe Me_

Power was still blazing in Kagome's eyes, crackling on her skin, and Sesshomaru turned to looked back at her in surprise. She stared at him for a moment, and then looked down at her own hands, and then pointed at him accusingly.

"It's _all_ _your fault_! You did this – _you_ did this -"

Over and over, she said it. She pounded at his chest with her fists; she couldn't hurt him, of course, but he found himself surprised at the force in her blows. And she was right. He had purposefully tormented his brother, he had left her for him to find, had, indirectly, been the cause of this whole situation. But he had only left her because he had always assumed she was _safe _with Inuyasha.

As gently as he could, he caught her hands, and held them until she was still.

"Yes – _yes_. It is all my fault. But mate – I never thought it would come to _this_ -"

Almost helplessly, he gestured at the scene around them.

"I never believed he would turn against _you -_"

Suddenly, visibly, he swayed. The world blinked, off, and then on, and then _off _-

And then again on, hazily. He was surprised to find himself on one knee, his knuckles pressed against the ground. There was an odd pressure in his chest, ringing in his ears.

His gaze traveled slowly across the ground as Kagome knelt next to him, and touched his shoulder hesitantly. His eyes locked onto Tetsusaiga, and he almost groaned. Of course; his weakness could come from nothing else. He had thought to protect his miko from Inuyasha, but he hadn't dreamed he would use the sword -

Despite black spots now dancing in his vision, Sesshomaru was moderately impressed that his barrier of unfocused youki had fended off Tetsusaiga. Then again...the sword had not been too happy with how it was being used, either, that was plain.

"Sesshomaru -"

He grew aware that Kagome was calling him. From the concerned expression on her face, he supposed she had been doing so for a while.

"It is all right, mate. The youki that I sent to protect you will require some hours to replenish itself, that is all."

Kagome's eyes widened a little.

"You – _you_ did that. I remember; there was golden light, from nowhere...I blacked out after that."

"I am not surprised. Your body is not meant to handle so much power; it only did not _hurt_ you because it was focused through you, not into you."

Slowly, not objecting to her hand on his arm, Sesshomaru stood. There was a moment of dizziness, but it passed quickly.

"I...I guess I should thank you. But I don't understand. I thought – that this was what you wanted. I thought you wanted me dead, so you wouldn't have a human for your mate any more...and I thought you wanted Inuyasha hurt, before you killed him -"

She shook her head and took a step back from him, looked up.

"But there he is, laying on the ground, completely vulnerable...and you aren't doing anything. And here _I_ am – because you saved me."

Sesshomaru said nothing, and scowled, and looked away from her.

"I guess I...should try to...I guess I'll see to Inuyasha."

He almost warned her away – but it was too late. Kagome took only a handful of steps toward Inuyasha before the hanyou was dragging himself to his feet, all snarls and staggers.

"Get away from me! Don't touch me!"

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! Ahh Kagome, a forgiving nature can only get you so far. He was, after all, just trying to kill you. And not just because of the demon-red crazy eyes. Poor baby. Up Next: Inuyasha Says The Worst Thing(s) Ever...and Kagome Changes Her Mind.

Please Review!


	60. Chapter 60

Drabble Collection Alpha

LX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Anemone: Forsaken, Abandonment_

Inuyasha was bloody and weak and far closer to death than he had any right to be and still standing, but he still managed to throw off Kagome's hands as she tried to help.

"Go to _him_, why don't you? Go help him _finish me off_. _No!_"

A second time, he threw her off. The red flicker in his eyes was murderous; Kagome backed away. Her foot met something hard among the leaves, and -

"Take Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha, take – take Tetsusaiga, _please -_"

He rejected her with venom in his voice.

"_No._ It doesn't want me any more than you do. _Fuck _Tetsusaiga; _you_ take it, if it likes you so much! Go play bitch to my brother; see if I care!"

He stared directly into her eyes.

"I should never have bothered with you; I should never have trusted you! It was all your fault; everything! _You _brought the jewel back here – _you _broke it!"

And then he said the most unforgivable thing.

"I should have let Kikyou have her soul! Then I'd have _her_. She'd have _killed_ Sesshomaru rather than let him touch her – or died trying!"

And he turned his back, and stumbled away.

Kagome fell onto her knees, hands pressed against her mouth, as if that could somehow hold back the great, gasping sobs that kept erupting from her, one after another.

He would rather she was dead, than that she was Sesshomaru's? He would rather have Kikyou, and not her?

Despite the pain she _did_ feel, she found herself inspecting it, and finding it less than she had expected – perhaps because she _had _expected it. Inuyasha would never love anyone but Kikyou; he had room in his heart for no one but her.

_And especially not me_.

* * *

><p>AN: And once again, that's all for now!


	61. Chapter 61

Drabble Collection Alpha

XLI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Rosebud: A Heart Innocent Of Love_

Kagome wondered what to do. She had based her hopes on her love for Inuyasha - love that had turned to ashes in her hands, dust in her mouth.

Half-delirious, she turned to Sesshomaru.

"What about you, Sesshomaru? Could you love me?"

He looked at her with those piercing demon eyes, and shrugged – apologetically, she thought.

"Mate, I do not know. I have never loved anyone."

It was such an absurd answer! But of course it was true; and didn't that explain so much?

She laughed quietly, and at the same time was thankful for his sideways glance.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! I decided to not postpone this one after all...because I know what the missing bit is! I haven't decided where to put Sesshomaru's _home_, you see...nuts. Suggestions are always welcome, but I will _not_ make him live in a candy house.

Please Review!


	62. Chapter 62

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Begonia: Deep Thoughts_

Sesshomaru continued to stare down at Kagome as she shook herself and kept her silence - holding tightly to more disturbing questions, he was sure. It was obvious to him that in her distress over Inuyasha she had not recognized what had happened between them - the thing that stood out most to him about the conflict just past, the _impossible_ thing.

The pink light of her miko energy had pushed him away, pushed him_ back_ – and in doing so, had prevented his youki from overwhelming her will. The holy power had acted as youki would in a demon female – invoking her strength over his prodding, pushing aside the pressure of the bond – not an unusual occurrence, and not important...

Except that she was human, not youkai - and he had never met even a youkai female with the power to stand against him. Was it possible...was it possible that she could be a match for him after all? She was certainly desirable enough; he could spend years teaching her new ways to please him, and learning all her sounds...

He closed his eyes and felt out her presence, something he had not bothered with before, and was surprised. The strength of her! Human she might be, but not weak...no, not weak.

He had truly believed she would never be able to assert herself against him, but she had proved him wrong, even if she had not yet noticed this. She had been too distracted by the violence of what had happened to Inuyasha to see what had happened to _him. _

_Perhaps it was only because my power is inadequate; because I used so much youki in that barrier._

But his expression remained enigmatic, even through the thought...because he did not think that was so. She had touched barely a tendril of her true power, and look what she had done! He had never considered that because she was miko, she might not be vulnerable.

She would be worth the trouble she would cause, if she was _truly_ his equal... but in any case, she was far too good to waste on Inuyasha.

In light of what had happened during the last hour, Sesshomaru reconsidered his earlier desire, and found it greatly strengthened.

_She must come with me. She __must__ - _

"Come with me, mate. Return _home_."

_Where you belong_.

But that, he did not say.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! Sesshomaru, Adventurer In His Own Mind! Scaaary! :laughs: Coming Soon: Hello, Goodbye...except I have to figure out whether to let Shippou go with Kagome or not. Hmm...

Please Review!


	63. Chapter 63

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Freesia: Trust_

Kagome turned slowly and peered up at Sesshomaru through damp lashes. Her suspicion had faded, replaced by anger and grief and a deep wish for some time in quiet to sort through her feelings. She supposed she should be crying, but those first heart-wrenching sobs seemed to have torn the tears right out of her; her throat felt raw and tight.

"Where ...where do you live?"

She saw a flicker of _something_ on his face, but it disappeared so quickly she wondered if she had been mistaken.

"My father's fortress is mine now. It occupies an island to the north, but I would not worry about where, if I were you. Without me you would never find it, and if by some chance of fate it did become visible to you, you still would never pass the barrier on your own."

"Barrier?"

"Yes. My power is the only safety there."

She laughed a little laugh with no humor in it.

"It seems like your power is the only safety for _me_ anywhere."

He looked at her oddly, and again _something_ flickered on his face.

"Does that mean you trust me now, miko? That you will let me take you?"

She laughed the little laugh again.

"Yes. But you should learn to call me by my name if I am coming to stay with you, Sesshomaru. I don't mind...when you call me mate. It's just – please don't call me _miko_. "

"If you desire it, mate – Kagome."

A very tiny smile spread on her features.

"Thank you."

Slowly, Kagome climbed to her feet and stretched a little, then wrapped her arms tightly around herself.

"Do you mind if I say goodbye?"

Her fingers gripped the fabric of her sleeves.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! She's GOING! She's going she's going...woo! And...I _still_ don't know if Shippou is. Oh well! Onward!

Please Review!


	64. Chapter 64

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Marjoram: Comfort, Consolation_

Sesshomaru was too pleased that Kagome had agreed to come with him to deny her farewells – but he had no intention of going himself into that village.

Carefully, he bathed each of the scratches Inuyasha had left – on her wrists, her shoulders, her breasts, laving them with his tongue. With one hand, he wiped blood away from her lip and touched her cheek, the bruise swelling there where Inuyasha had hit her. She saw the corner of his mouth twitch downward, almost a frown.

Violent thoughts seemed to make his fingers tense. He left the shreds of her shirt where they lay, and instead tied his haori around her waist, his touch gentle and his words soft.

"You seem attached to my clothes, mate. I will have something made for you."

He was rewarded by her faint flush and the return of her tiny smile, but it did not last long. His movements hesitant, Sesshomaru stroked his fingers through her hair

"Go, Kagome. Swiftly - and then return. I will be here."

Kagome went, looking back over her shoulder as she half-walked, half-ran into the village. Sesshomaru stood silent, unmoving, watching her make her way...

Waiting.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! Yay, more! Happy Birthday To Me; a present for you! :P More soon!

Please Review!


	65. Chapter 65

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Delphinium: Presumption_

In the village, her friends rushed to her, each of them with a worried expression. Sango held her hand tightly; Miroku touched a finger to her cheek and then looked away, a disgusted expression on his face.

"_Kagome_..."

"What did he _do_ -"

They had misunderstood.

"Wait, _please_ -"

Kagome took a deep breath, and freed her hand from Sango's grasp, scrubbed at her eyes with her knuckles.

"You've got it wrong; it wasn't Sesshomaru who did this. He's never struck me; he doesn't need to. This..."

She took a deep breath.

"_Inuyasha_ did this."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words - Shocker! Poor Miroku and Sango, what a terrible thing to hear! Poor Kagome's face! And Poor Inuyasha when Sango Eventually Gets Her Hands On Him. I think I might have to write that scene now...

Please Review!


	66. Chapter 66

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Cyclamen: Resignation, Good-Bye_

Sango and Miroku stared at Kagome, shocked into silence - until she gave them information that was more stunning still.

"I came back to tell you that I'm...going away. Sesshomaru invited me to _visit_ with him, and considering...everything else...it seems like the right time for a change."

She hesitated, wondering what more she should tell them, wondering if they, too, were in danger...or if Inuyasha's grudge was only against her. Sango looked at Kagome closely, her expression suspicious.

"Are you sure this is _your_ decision? You don't seem like yourself, Kagome; this is _Sesshomaru _we're talking about! What about Inuyasha? Why would...isn't...he..."

But Sango's words drifted into silence. She could see by the change in Kagome's expression, the scowl that twisted her tender cheek, that those had been the wrongs words to say.

"I decided to leave _because _of Inuyasha, Sango. I'm leaving because he said – b-because he -"

Her throat closed. She found herself unable to repeat his terrible words, and resorted to describing his actions instead.

"Inuyasha - tried to - _k-kill_ me."

The tears she had lost chose that moment to make themselves known. Her words degenerated into sobs. Sango took a quick step forward and pulled Kagome into a tight hug. The Taijiya's eyes were bright with tears and dark with rage, and she peered over Kagome's shoulder at Miroku, mouthing the words:

"_Inuyasha tried to **kill** her_?_"_

She saw an anger equal to her own reflected on his face, and knew that they would have something to say to Inuyasha – _both _of them – when next he decided to show his face.

"Kagome – what exactly happened? I know Inuyasha hasn't been very happy lately, but -"

"Exactly what I said – but just listen, please? Sesshomaru is waiting and he is _not _the most patient of...youkai."

Skirting around intimate details, speaking quickly, Kagome told them everything – Sesshomaru's odd and somehow caring behavior; his _request_, his departure, Inuyasha's subsequent attack...and how Sesshomaru had protected her, at great cost to himself.

Even when she was finished, Sango still looked suspicious; it was Miroku who held out a hand to restrain her, and forced a smile for Kagome's sake.

"If it's what you want, Kagome, and you're sure you'll be safe."

"Yes. Yes – I'll be safe. But before I go - where is Shippou?"

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! But where has Shippou gone, indeed! Do you need a hint? I'll give you one: Sesshomaru! Actually, that was a terrible hint, because it was the answer :P But who cares, because I'm writing that chapter now! :D

Please Review!


	67. Chapter 67

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXVII

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

G: Gad: _to wander idly_

Floating aimlessly over the forest in the shape of a giant pink balloon, Shippou failed to pay attention to his surroundings until he was close enough to a certain Daiyoukai to be both noticed, and ignored. He did not _know_ that he was being ignored – and so after another minute, drifting now in the direction of the village, Shippou came close enough to Sesshomaru that _he_ finally noticed his danger...and spent a frantic moment in mid-air wondering why he wasn't dead yet and if that might suddenly change.

Even as the thought crossed his mind, he felt a prick, as if he had been stabbed with a pin. The next moment, he found himself falling through the air, restored to his normal shape. As he tumbled, his vision spun between blue sky, green trees, and a white head of hair.

He considered his options at high speed, but he didn't really have any; he could run, but Sesshomaru was _much_ faster – he could try to hide, but that wouldn't do him any good since it looked like he was falling on the Daiyoukai's _head_!

_No good, no good! _

He was more than leery of Sesshomaru, who had hurt Kagome and at the same time raised a barrier between her and Inuyasha. If he couldn't run, and he couldn't hide – what other option was there?

_Baka Sesshomaru! If he hadn't showed up, I bet I'd have a family by now!_

In a moment of stupid bravery – or perhaps brave stupidity – Shippou decided on his course of action and committed to it.

"Yaaaaaah! _Die_!"

A swathe of blue fire burst outward from his hands. He succeeded in startling Sesshomaru into taking one step backward, and then landed on his paws, surprised by his apparent success.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words of Shippou, Mighty Warrior! I dedicate this chapter to r0o, for THE SMALL ARE MIGHTY! :D More later; for now, my internet has been stolen from me in the name of wizards...

Please Review!


	68. Chapter 68

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Daisy: Loyal Love, Innocence_

Shippou planted his feet as he landed and growled, showing little fangs.

"You hurt Kagome! I won't let you get away with it; I won't let you hurt her again!"

A second splash of blue fire, fueled this time by Shippou's fear and the anger he felt on Kagome's behalf, leapt up again toward Sesshomaru. It was a greater manifestation of power than anything he had yet achieved...but this time, Sesshomaru was prepared – and Shippou found himself suddenly, uncomfortably and unceremoniously lifted by his tail.

The blue flame of his foxfire went out mid-blast, and he gulped as Sesshomaru raised him to eye level and looked him over carefully.

"You are braver than many warriors greater than you, kit, to attack _me_. Do you have a death wish?"

Shivers crawled over Shippou's skin, but he remembered Kagome falling forward onto the grass, pulling away from him...Kagome, who spent long periods of time alone in the forest now, avoiding everyone and _especially_ Inuyasha. All of that was Sesshomaru's fault - !

"Lemme go! Lemme go! You ruined everything, and _you hurt Kagome_!"

Shippou's voice grew stronger as he repeated himself and twisted, trying to escape. Only an instinct for self-preservation restrained his foxfire in the face of Sesshomaru's sudden scowl.

"Someone has been misinforming you. Did you not see Kagome today?"

"_No_! She's been -"

"Then you would not know. This morning, my brother tried to take her life."

Shippou's mouth fell open; he was suddenly dizzy with fear and confusion. If Inuyasha had tried to hurt _Kagome_, then none of them were safe! He could hardly believe it – but the hanyou had been _odd_ lately, it was true, and Sesshomaru was not the lying sort. As if sensing Shippou's difficulty, Sesshomaru elaborated the tiniest bit.

"He would have killed her for his choices...except that I protected her. Do not speak if you do not know what you are saying."

Sesshomaru dropped him then, and Shippou fell on all fours, confused beyond belief, and looked up doubtfully.

"Are you sure you didn't switch bodies with Inuyasha or something? Because -"

A hard fist came down on his head, and Shippou grasped reflexively at the painful spot.

"OW! _Seriously_..."

He rubbed at the bump on his head with both hands, and flopped down on the ground, near Sesshomaru's feet but not _too_ near, muttering under his breath.

* * *

><p>AN: Ah Shippou...so silly. Onward!


	69. Chapter 69

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Moss: Maternal Love_

"I dunno _what's_ going on. _I_ thought _he_ was the bad guy! I hope Kagome comes soon..."

Shippou's words were just loud enough for Sesshomaru to hear. Almost exasperated, Sesshomaru looked down at him from the corner of one eye.

"Kit, what _is_ Kagome to you? By rights, you should be terrified of her – she is a powerful miko, and you are -"

But it was Kagome herself who silenced him, climbing over the crest of the hill just in time to hear his words.

"He's my _son_! Don't you _dare _hurt him, Sesshomaru!"

"He is unhurt. But your _son_? Don't be ridiculous; that is impossible."

She looked at him in fury; he amended his words.

"He is full-blooded youkai, Kagome. He cannot be..."

He paused and looked at her strangely

"Or do you mean to tell me you _adopted _this kit?"

Kagome nodded and gestured for Shippou to come to her.

"Shippou found me on his own search for vengeance. After, he stayed; I've taken care of him ever since. So...he is my son."

Sesshomaru held out an arm for her.

"Then come. Bring your son and stand beside me."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! And Shippou gets to go! Yay! Mostly that was because everyone wants him to go and because I always feel bad for Rin, who seems to have no one for company but Jaken. Also, has anyone besides me noticed that I never mentioned if Naraku was dead yet or not? Should probably decide that, huh? :P

Please Review!


	70. Chapter 70

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Zinnia: Remembrance_

As Kagome rose up into the sky with Sesshomaru, clinging tightly to his sleeve with one hand and Shippou with the other, her eyes scanned almost involuntarily for Inuyasha...but he was not there. The weight of the truth pressed on her suddenly, and she found her eyes overflowing again with tears. Shippou noticed, and patted her arm gently; Sesshomaru noticed, and spoke, concerned.

"Are you in pain, mate?"

Kagome swallowed thickly.

"Yes. But it is not a pain in my body. It is not a pain that anything can heal, except...time."

Everything had gone so wrong!

_Good-bye, Inuyasha._

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words of Kagome's last farewell; he may have tried to kill her, but don't think Inuyasha has lost all his grip on Kagome's heart – or her psyche. She's too forgiving for that, silly woman. Onward again!

Please Review!


	71. Chapter 71

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Daffodil: Chivalry_

After an hour of frigid flight, Kagome began to yawn and shiver both. Sesshomaru could not help but notice, and almost laughed when he heard her mutter something about him standing still for so long.

"I am not _standing still_. It is my youki that moves us, Kagome."

She looked down, and then back up again _very_ quickly.

"Oh – I should have realized. Sorry, I won't distract you; will it bother you if I...sort of...sit?"

He took her arm gently.

"Mate, you are human and fragile and being very foolish. Come here."

His tone was scolding; he pulled her toward him with a little jerk, and she stumbled and let out a little shriek as the wide expanse of ocean beneath them became far too visible –

And then found herself in his arms, close to his body. The long pelt he wore over his shoulder lifted, seemingly of its own volition, and wrapped itself over her; it was warm, and soft, and pulsed faintly with youki.

Shippou twisted in her arms, and finally curled up on her stomach, under her hands. Kagome looked up at Sesshomaru, blushing brightly...but though he certainly saw, he said nothing.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words of Pointless Fluff. Seriously! She's wrapped in _mokomoko_ – that's the fluffiest thing there is! But...Onward!

Please Review!


	72. Chapter 72

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Bamboo: Strength_

Some time later, Kagome was awakened by Sesshomaru's voice.

"We have arrived, Kagome. Can you stand, now?"

Kagome yawned hugely, and nodded. Carefully, he let her down.

Rubbing her eyes with one hand, she peered down toward the sea, and saw...nothing. But she didn't even need to extend her _other _senses to feel power; _power. _Power on such a scale as to seem threatening and massive, looming even though invisible. And then -

A thread, a rope, a lash, a _conduit – _and beside her Sesshomaru was suddenly glowing like the sun, eyes red, teeth bared with the strain of harnessing such energy. But something seemed _off_ about the flow of power; he had it well leashed, and yet...power was moving from Sesshomaru toward the barrier, not the other way around – or if it was, the barrier's energy was indistinguishable from Sesshomaru's own. But that was impossible, unless...

"Kami-sama..."

Sesshomaru's eyes flickered toward her at her whispered exclamation.

"Sesshomaru, is that barrier _your_ power?"

She could have sworn he was about to smile, but instead his attention was wrenched back to the flux of energy, and he answered her without looking at her again.

"Yes. I am surprised you can tell; but then perhaps...I should not be."

As he finished speaking, the barrier collapsed with a _crack_ of sound and a flash of light. When her vision cleared, Kagome drew in a gasp, awed and startled.

His island was a forested jewel in the midst of white-capped water, lush and green and crowned by what could only be his _shiro_, grand on the scale of the Forbidden City, but far more beautiful and ancient in its style.

Sesshomaru eyed her without turning; Kagome's astonishment was beautiful to see. He spoke impulsively.

"Welcome home, mate."

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words. Eeehee Sesshomaru is so cute. I couldn't help myself! I didn't even intend to have the second half of this scene the way it is, and then it WROTE ITSELF! Apparently my thalamus has bypassed my cortex and is in the process of taking over the world...fingers first. :P

Please Review!


	73. Chapter 73

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Poppy_: _Oblivion_

Inuyasha made his way through the forest to a deserted cave which he had sometimes made use of in the past. He left a trail of blood behind him; when he arrived he barely had the energy to drag off his haori and lay it over a convenient ledge, before he toppled onto it himself.

Blackness wavered across his vision, and a few thoughts crystallized in his mind as oblivion won out over the world.

_I hurt Kagome, but Sesshomaru saved her. _

And:

_She will hate me now forever_.

And:

_I hate me forever, too. _

He fell down into darkness.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words. At the edge of death, many things become clear. Next: A Haunting Begins!...or is it?

Please Review!


	74. Chapter 74

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Evening Primrose: Inconstancy_

In the darkness, Inuyasha found himself somehow floating. He blinked, and uncurled himself carefully. Surprisingly, he felt no pain. This was like no dream he had ever had; was he _dead_?

"No, you are _not_ dead – though for once, you would have deserved it!"

Inuyasha's eyes went wide. He did not know the voice, but that presence – that _presence_ -

"Turn, Inuyasha, and face your father!"

So swiftly he almost overbalanced and fell, Inuyasha whipped around and found himself looking up at someone he had never thought to see.

"Father..."

"Yes."

And then he smacked his son so hard that for moment, Inuyasha saw not only stars, but planets.

"I gave you a name, Inuyasha! I gave you the power in your blood, the armor you wear, the sword you bear – but the power did not serve you, and the armor has been pierced, and the sword -!"

His voice became low and dangerous.

"Tetsusaiga rejected you, as it once rejected your brother. Do you know what that means, Inuyasha? Do you know what you have sacrificed to your malice, to your _pettiness_?"

Inuyasha let out an anguished wail.

"But she went to Sesshomaru – all willing, all _wanton_! She went to Sesshomaru, and -"

In the air, hazy as a mirage but clear enough for detail, Inuyasha saw twin visions. One was his brother, cross-legged in the forest at night, power glowing around him and floating outward like particles of dust, falling over the forest, over the village -

In the other, he saw Kagome – asleep, calm...and then, as those tiny dust-particles touched her skin, gave her a golden glow almost as bright as Sesshomaru's, she began to move, turning, panting...

Inuyasha looked away, and the visions vanished. He remembered that night too well, but he had not suspected...

"You misjudged her. You claimed to love her, but you never gave her your trust, even when she gave you everything, Inuyasha. Sesshomaru is cunning; he knows the power he has over her now, and you, too, know it. Are you surprised that now that you have made her his, he wants to keep her? That woman is a true prize; beautiful, powerful, loving, and full of trust, even now – but not for you. Never again for you, not in the way you want."

Desperate, trying to cling to the lie he had flung at Kagome, Inuyasha shook his head with a violent motion.

"I don't want Kagome! I don't!"

His father only smiled; it was a grim expression.

"I should have warned you not to lie to me, son. I do so now. However...keep in mind, it is warning I will only give once."

Inuyasha gulped. And then his father shouted at him, his voice impressive in its angry power.

"What did you do, idiot boy! Trying to kill the only person who has ever truly loved you - what were you thinking?"

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words of Inupapa giving Inuyasha what for! Go Inupapa go! I love when I get to give him random appearances! I dedicate this chapter to r0o and Demonqueen, who convinced me that haunting Inuyasha "for his own good" was a good idea.

Please Review!


	75. Chapter 75

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Rose Leaf: You May Hope_

His father's words rang in Inuyasha's head.

_The only person who truly loved me...but that's not true! First was..._

"That's not true! The only person who loved me was Kikyou; _she_ was good to me..."

"Do you truly believe that, son, even with the demands she put upon you?"

Inuyasha dragged his eyes up to his father's face.

"Love does not demand; love is a kindness that soothes without questions, an honesty and an acceptance that you have only ever known from the one you harmed."

Inuyasha was silent.

"You do not believe me? Very well!"

* * *

><p>AN: Next up is Kikyou, who does not tell Inuyasha what he wants to hear.

Please Review!


	76. Chapter 76

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Pine: Pity_

With those last, angry words, the Inu no Taisho vanished.

The darkness became a shimmer, like the surface of a mirror, and then was replaced by a forest glade; a familiar place, one of heartache in two dimensions. There was a rustle behind him on the grass, and he turned swiftly, and then felt his heart constrict.

"_Kikyou_ – Kikyou, I've missed you -"

Kikyou's shade stared at him with compassion, but not the spark of love he wanted.

"I am sorry, Inuyasha. I did poorly by you; my life was a mash of mistakes, one after the other. I should not have been chosen to protect the sacred jewel; I should not have been chosen to stand against the darkness. I was weak, weak in my will, and weak in my heart."

Her gaze turned piercing, and sad.

"In death, I have learned about love. I did not love you, Inuyasha, not the way you wanted and the way that girl did. I wanted _escape_; I wanted a normal life, and in your clumsy, puppyish way, you offered that to me. I couldn't resist; I _thought_ I loved you. But what I loved was the idea of being free of my commitments; the idea of being a woman, anyone's woman...of being relieved of even the responsibility for myself."

She smiled a far away smile.

"Even if I _had_ loved you, Inuyasha, I am dead, and you are alive. As much of me as still exists is in that girl – and that is not much. She has grown, in presence, in power...she has _matured_. She is becoming a far better woman than I ever could have been."

And then suddenly she was looking at him with hard eyes.

"Are you worthy of her, Inuyasha?"

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! And I say...NO. But that's why I write Sess/Kag. :P Now...I wonder...more Inuyasha, or back to Kagome, who we left floating in mid-air?


	77. Chapter 77

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Gladiolus: Sincerity_

Inuyasha was astonished into silence. He tried to reach out for her, but his arms were wooden, stiff. He could not lift them, could not step forward. All he managed was to fall to his knees.

"You cannot answer my question, Inuyasha? Then I will tell you the thing you are so afraid of."

His mouth moved as if to speak, but he found himself suddenly voiceless.

"No, Inuyasha. You must listen, and you must _hear_."

She came close, and reached out and touched his cheek.

"The answer...is _no_. You are _not _worthy of her. Because that is what you think, and that is what you have made true."

His tears ran hot and swift.

"I came to tell you these things because, though I did not _love_ you, I still did care for you. I have seen what you did to destroy your life; I have helped you as much as I can. But you should not have said those things, Inuyasha. You should not have tried to hurt her."

More than anything his father had said, her words cut at him.

"You have lost more than you know, Inuyasha. More than you know."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! I am undecided as to whether I should return to Kagome and Sesshomaru now, or finish this bit with Inuyasha...but it might take a while. I have _almost _finished deciding that Inupapa is going to show Inuyasha his brother's life has not been all fun and games.

Please Review!


	78. Chapter 78

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Primrose: I Can't Live Without You_

Dim light came through the mouth of the cave where Inuyasha had laid himself, illuminating his haggard features and the blood that had seeped from his body. All at once, he woke and blinked up at the ceiling, licking dry lips.

He was in great pain, but it was nothing he had not lived through before; his thoughts were far more tormented than his body. The last thing he remembered was talking to Kikyou, the soft tones of her voice telling him all the ways he had been _wicked._..just like his father had.

Slowly, wincing as the crust of dried blood on his wounds peeled away from his flesh, Inuyasha staggered upright and followed the sound of water to the rear corner of the cave. A trickle slid down the wall, collected in a shallow, mineral-scented pool, and then wound away into darkness.

He swallowed grateful mouthfuls of cold water and ignored the hunger that woke in him once his thirst was slaked. He was in no condition for hunting, and probably wouldn't be for several days. Despite himself, he found himself thinking wistfully of Kagome; the care she used to give him, her soft hands and soft bandages, her medicines, her cooking...her voice.

But he couldn't remember the sound of her speaking or her laughter. He could only hear her cry of pain, her tears; the only words that came to him were his own.

"_I should never have bothered with you; I should never have trusted you!_"

Even after he had attacked her, she had been trying to help him - and he had cast her aside. He had told her...such horrible things!

_Kikyou was right. I do not deserve her. _

He turned, and walked towards the mouth of the cave, but he did not get far.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! I've been a little slow with updates today and yesterday, I know; I've been working on my bit for the 2nd Annual Challenge from forum. Almost done, though, so more Alpha later tonight I expect!

Please Review!


	79. Chapter 79

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Day Lily: Chinese Emblem for Mother_

As though a moonless night lurked inside him, waiting, Inuyasha found himself once again immersed in darkness. He felt, momentarily, the impact of his battered body against the floor of the cave; then he felt nothing, until he opened his eyes to find himself once more suspended in blackness.

He turned back and forth, looking around him, and his eyes encountered a solitary figure at a distance, approaching slowly. Quickly, he realized that it was not his father, and then just as quickly recognized who it _was_.

"Mother? _Mother_?"

He heard her sigh.

"Oh, Inuyasha...what have you done?"

* * *

><p>AN: Izayoi appears by popular request, and because of spontaneous inspiration. Coming up: Inuyasha's mother takes Inuyasha on a trip down memory lane...but the memories don't belong to either of them! I hereby dedicate this chapter to LadyBonBon, for numerous wonderful reviews!

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	80. Chapter 80

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Stock: Bonds of Affection_

His mother knelt in darkness, her robes and hair spread around her, and Inuyasha stood very still for a single moment and then ran forward as if he were five years old again.

She opened her arms for him, and held him close; her scent had not changed, and her features were almost the same as the last time he had seen her – almost, because she didn't appear emaciated by illness and long sorrow.

"My son, my son; how sorry I am I had to leave you. Truly, I had my own part in the making of this terrible path you have settled on."

Inuyasha pulled back from her embrace and sat in front of her.

"Mother, I've been stupid and being stupid lost me Kagome. But that isn't your fault -"

"No. But I should have been stronger, should have held on to life. I should have been there to teach you there is no shame in being what you are; that your nature is no more sinful than that of the rest of the world."

She reached out with one pale hand and brushed his cheek.

"But I was not strong, Inuyasha. The only thing that was ever strong about me was the love I felt for your father...and the love I felt for you. It is for that reason that I am here, to turn you aside from this road which leads only to your own destruction."

Inuyasha opened his mouth angrily, but she held up a hand, forestalling speech.

"Have you not guessed where you are, my son? Do you not see the danger that is waiting around you?"

He spoke defensively.

"I'm – I'm not _dead_ -"

Her smile was quiet and sad.

"No. No...not yet."

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words of Izayoi NOT being cooperative! This happened, instead of what I intended, and I'm not really sure what _this_ is. Comforting a deranged hanyou? Making him aware of the danger his own stupidity has put him in? A small bit of recognition on his part that his own idiocy lost him Kagome? All those things...but _that wasn't what I meant to write! _:P_ O_h well. Onward!

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	81. Chapter 81

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Narcissus: Egotism_

The meaning of his mother's words was not lost on Inuyasha. He shivered.

"Mother, do you mean I'm -"

He couldn't finish the sentence. He had never thought of himself as one to be afraid of death - but right now there were too many things unfinished behind him. He couldn't die now!

His panic must have shown on his face, because his mother reached out again to comfort him.

"I cannot say, if you will live or die. This place is _in-between_. It is a realm that is not a realm; an hour could pass here, or an age – and in the world of the living, perhaps a moment...or perhaps all of time."

Inuyasha failed at truly understanding this, but did grasp the part of importance to him.

"If I'm not dead, then why I am here?"

His mother's feature's hardened into a scolding expression he hadn't seen since he was tiny.

"You are here because your father is using all his substantial influence to _keep_ you here. To keep you alive, to keep you safe. You are hovering on the border of life and death; you are in _danger_, Inuyasha. "

Alarmed, he bolted to his feet. His hand went instinctively to his waist, but the simple movement engaged a horrible memory – Kagome on the ground before him, the white-light of Tetsusaiga's transformation, a hideous shriek as the blade moved toward her and then rebounded from a golden barrier -

The lack of the sword in its sheath at his side made the memory all too real.

Beside him in the void, a panel of images running out into nothingness reflected his thoughts. Confused, horrified, he watched the terrible incident over and over; small things imprinted themselves on his awareness. The expression of horror on Kagome's face; the flush of power that illuminated her skin with brilliant gold; the familiar energy that made up the barrier that had...saved her life.

His mother turned to him, her face dispassionate now.

"Your father showed you a truth, did he not?"

Inuyasha flushed with anger and nodded sharply.

"Yes. He showed me Sesshomaru, stealing Kagome!"

He heard a low sigh, and felt his mother's hand on his hair.

"That is no excuse, Inuyasha – and that is _not_ what he showed you. Your own judgment faulted you in that circumstance; your failure of trust. But your father wants more than just trust from you, Inuyasha. He wants you to understand your brother."

"I know everything I need to know about that bastard! He's been trying to kill me practically since I was born, and -"

His mother turned, and gestured at the memory still flickering in the dark beside them.

"That is not what I see now, Inuyasha. I see your hand on the sword, a sword your father made to protect _me_. It has rejected you, Inuyasha; it is _your_ face this woman is turning from in terror."

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words, and no wiggling out for Inuyasha! His mother is finally cooperating, so...onward!

Please Review!


	82. Chapter 82

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Peony: Happy Life_

Inuyasha desperately desired to turn away, to run, to be anywhere but here, hearing these things. Could hell truly be worse than this?

_I know what I did, I know it was terrible!_

He wanted to scream it at her, but...she was his mother.

"You will haunt this woman's dreams and make them nightmares, but Sesshomaru has saved her. Sesshomaru's are the hands that will wake and comfort her; do you know why that is, Inuyasha?"

He stiffened. A wave of anger and frustration rushed through him and then faded into heavy sadness.

"You blame Sesshomaru for your losses, is this not so?"

Scowling, Inuyasha nodded.

"But you do not _know_ your brother, Inuyasha. You do not know him, and you do not understand him; and so your hatred is empty and your blame misses the mark by far."

"Misses the mark? Mother - he _attacked_ us! He sent a demon to make me think you were alive - the first time he saw Kagome he tried to kill her! I told you – he hates humans, and -"

She looked at him, obviously surprised and with a look on her face which made him think he had said something foolish.

"Almost killed her the first time he met her, you say? And did you, too, not do that exact same thing?"

He was shocked into silence.

"Do you not see, this is exactly what I mean! You should know better than to make such generalizations. Have you forgotten that the women you believe he stole was human? Have you never seen the girl who follows in his footsteps? _Both_ are safe with him."

Inuyasha remained silent, his face once again full of anger and dark thoughts.

"It is not humans Sesshomaru hates, Inuyasha. It is _me_; and you, by association. It is time you learned why. It is time you knew your own history, and the history of your House; it is time you opened your eyes to the truth. _That_ is why I am here, Inuyasha. That is why your father sent me. I will show you what you think you already know – the truth about your brother's _so-perfect life_."

Around them, the darkness began to spin and swirl into color; a world came into being around him, but it was _not_ the world he had left with his body.

* * *

><p>AN: Ahh, finally got where I wanted to go! 400 words...and Coming Up: Some Things about a Tiny Sesshomaru...and some Other Things about a Tiny Inuyasha, and the Why of His Existence.

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	83. Chapter 83

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Orange Blossom: Innocence_

The world around him remained dull, as if dipped in mist. With his mother beside him, walking at a sedate pace, Inuyasha began to walk through this new place, looking around with hungry eyes. He had never seen it before, but he knew where he was all the same.

This was his father's house; this was the _shiro_ he had been forbidden from entering.

As he watched, youkai in armor and servants dress ran back and forth; he stepped abruptly to one side as an Inu ran straight towards him, apparently oblivious, and then restrained a gasp when he felt his mother's hand on his arm, tugging him back into place beside her like an errant child.

The Inu ran straight through him.

"Before you run off with the wrong impressions, I must tell you what is happening and where we are, my son."

"This is father's fortress!"

His mother was obviously startled, but she nodded.

"Yes, this is your father's _shiro_...but long before you were born, and long before _I_ was born. In fact, _this_ is the day that your brother was born. We are not really _there_, of course; this is...an illusion, an image – as you showed me with your memory."

As she finished speaking, there was a great wail, a scream that flattened Inuyasha's ears against his head, and then the cries of an infant. He scowled up at the window nearest them, from which the sound was loudest, but his mother's hand on his shoulder provided restraint.

"Even if you wish it, you can do no harm to anyone here. Remember; this is memory, only; a vision, not reality."

Slowly, Inuyasha let out a breath and then nodded.

"Come now; at this very moment, your father is gearing for war, and at the same time, he considers his mate and the pup he knows she has just born him. Someone is bringing that pup to your father now."

"My _brother_."

"Yes."

Inuyasha saw that their walk had brought them up into the main hall; his father was there, making final adjustments to his armor...and there, coming in through a side door – a servant, with a small bundle.

"Your son, my lord. My lady insisted you see him before you depart."

Inuyasha watched his father study his brother, the firstborn son, with an oddly dispassionate expression on his face.

"And my lady?"

"Healing well, my lord, but angry that you will not go to see her..."

Inuyasha watched his father wave a hand, dismissing those last words as beneath his concern. He peered forward, and despite himself Inuyasha did too.

Sesshomaru had been born with a tuft of silver hair; he slept peacefully until his father moved closer, and then stared up with innocent and curious eyes. He did not cry, but reached up for the tassel on the hilt of the sword strapped to his father's back as it dangled above him.

For a moment, finally, Inuyasha thought he saw his father smile, but the expression was gone quickly.

"I will name you _Sesshomaru_, my son. My son, who may grow stronger than I am by far...my _son_."

And again, Inuyasha saw an almost-smile...but in the same moment, as if the world around them was water, and someone had touched it with a finger, everything _rippled..._faded...changed.

He found himself once again in darkness, with only his mother still beside him. Her eyes had taken on a sad expression, and he wondered at it...until he lost patience, and asked.

"Mother – something is bothering you?"

* * *

><p>AN: I suddenly saw the future...and this was in it! It was! And look! I was right! :P

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	84. Chapter 84

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Wisteria: Youth_

His mother's gaze shifted to Inuyasha, but her sadness did not really change.

"Yes...oh yes. Your have more in common with your brother than you suspect, my son."

Inuyasha scowled; she laughed. The sound held him still; it was something he had not heard since his earliest memories.

"You do not want to hear it, but it is true! Both of you were born into times of terrible conflict, and each of your births became a subject for great speculation. Your brother's birth was just as much an incitement to violence as yours was; perhaps more."

Inuyasha looked interested at this; he had been told, by Myoga, that his father had died shortly after his birth, and that the wounds responsible had come from a battle with the dragon he had defeated – Ryukotsusei...but that was all, the _summa_ of his knowledge about his father. The circumstances of his own birth - he wondered at them, but his mother seemed to only want to talk about Sesshomaru.

"Sesshomaru was the heir to the most powerful demon the world had yet seen...heir to the mantle of the Inu no Taisho, heir to a commanding position over the Youkai Army...and you heard your father's words. He looked at his hours-old infant, and saw a great potential, the potential for a power far surpassing his own."

She let out a great sigh.

"On that day – the day we saw - your father left to do battle in the East. That would be the last time your brother would see his father for nearly twenty years; and as I have been told, even for youkai that is a long time."

Inuyasha was interested in spite of himself, though he still saw no reason to pity his brother.

"Well, that's _sad_ and everything – but at least he had a father _eventually_. I _never_ did!"

She did not protest, but he could see that she was not pleased with him.

"Come, my son; let us see how your brother spent his youth. _Then_ you will tell me if it is better or worse than how you spent yours."

Again, there was a shift of light and color. They returned to his father's _shiro_...but this time all was quiet. Inuyasha saw dragons in a stable and the occasional servant, but there was no one else.

"What _happened_?"

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words...and the plot thickens! Poor tiny Sesshomaru, all alone with mommy...and mommy is...well, scary. Onward, to a slightly bigger but still irresistibly kawaii Daiyoukai-chibi!

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	85. Chapter 85

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Hydrangea: Frigidity, Heartlessness, Vanity_

"Where's everybody gone?"

Inuyasha was very much confused, but his mother only paused and gestured at the gate.

"Out; to war, to battle...in search of life or death at your father's side. He has been gone now for four years, and your brother lives here with his mother, her servants, and a few guards. Shall we see if we can find him?"

Inuyasha let out a snort, half amused and half disgusted.

"Four-year-old Sesshomaru? Alright. It's probably his _nap time_."

His mother's smile, which had lingered since her laughter, suddenly dimmed.

"That is what you think?"

Something about her tone held him silent, and they passed through empty halls and chambers, down many long galleries and finally out to courtyard that called them with the sounds of battle.

In the center of a gritty, dusty ring, Sesshomaru stood alone against not one, but _two_ opponents, either servants or unarmored guards. To one side stood his mother, her features schooled to disdain.

Inuyasha crouched down, in order to get a better look at his brother, and shook his head.

"He's not much bigger than Shippou! Stronger, though. _Obviously_."

Inuyasha's tone of voice was patronizing, but that could not disguise that he spoke the truth. Even at four years old, Sesshomaru maintained a form that was entirely humanoid. His dress was immaculate, white bordered in gold – very _princely_, Inuyasha thought - but that was most likely because of his mother.

He carried no sword, but he crouched with his claws held at _precisely _the right angle to cause the greatest amount of damage, and one of his hands bore a sickly green glow which was very familiar to Inuyasha.

Occasionally, little golden eyes would flicker towards the silent and apparently disinterested female sitting at the edge of the ring, but Sesshomaru's mother never looked at him; she gave him no encouragement at all.

Despite this, Sesshomaru did well, using his small size to his advantage. His foes were obviously leery of _dokkasou_, which gave Inuyasha the impression that this was not the first time they had fought Sesshomaru this way – and despite the fact that they were leery of it, Sesshomaru got in more than one stinging and smoking blow.

He dodged impressively, but of course he was only four - not yet the master warrior and tactician who would terrify all who encountered him. Eventually, a blow to the side of the head sent him spinning to the ground.

Inuyasha _almost_ laughed...

But Sesshomaru's mother beat him to it.

"You are the son of the Inu no Taisho? I see only weakness!"

Sesshomaru was silent and picked himself up quietly; he stood still, his eyes glistening.

"Are those _tears_?"

His mother's voice was imperious, sharp.

"No, mother."

Inuyasha stared in horror as Sesshomaru's mother stalked forward, grasped her son by the throat, and lifted him to her own eye level.

"_Liar_!"

She hissed the word between her teeth, and then dropped him, and turned away. It was thing Inuyasha had seen Sesshomaru do many times; to _him_, to other enemies...even to Kagome. And now he understood _why_. But he tried his hard to maintain his scowl, even looked away.

That didn't help him, though. He could could avoid looking at what was happening, but he couldn't keep from hearing it.

"Worthless! Weak! Insignificant! You are not worth the pain I suffered to bear you! I wonder - what would your father say about you?"

"Mo-mother?"

And at the trembling sound of Sesshomaru's voice, Inuyasha_ finally_ began to understand.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words...Ooo...emotionless Daiyoukai in the making...poor Tiny Sesshomaru! But onward!

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	86. Chapter 86

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Cactus-Saguaro Blossom: Endurance, Bravery_

The expression on Inuyasha's face gave him away, as Sesshomaru's mother turned from her son and walked back to the edge of the ring.

"Again! If he _cries_ – hit him twice as hard!"

One of the guards objected.

"My lady - !"

"Now! Or _I_ will teach him!"

The fight began again. Inuyasha watched in fascinated horror, heard his own mother speaking.

"She thinks it best for Sesshomaru to conceal his feelings; she thinks it would better still if he could live without them. Look at her! There is the source of the icy shield that binds your brother's heart."

She studied Inuyasha for a long moment, and then reached out a comforting hand to his shoulder.

"My son. I am sorry; but we are not done. Come."

She reached out her other hand, and the image rippled before them; it _changed..._ but much remained the same.

In the center of the dusty ring was still Sesshomaru, but some years seemed to have passed. He was taller, and his movements were more precise; he moved against four opponents, and all of them faced him with total concentration.

"Your brother at ten years old, Inuyasha. A weapon, not a pup."

Inuyasha watched as his brother defeated all four of those who faced him with relative ease. His features stayed hard, focused, unchanged; the battle seemed to pass over him and leave him untouched, something Inuyasha had always envied.

Now, though, knowing how Sesshomaru had come by that particular ability...

"We do not have all that much time, Inuyasha; come – we go forward again."

And again, his mother grasped his shoulders, and the world tilted around them. This time, he was not surprised to see that once again, little had changed...but seeing this expectation in him, his mother shook her head.

"This is a _special_ day, Inuyasha. Your brother has recently passed his twelfth name day, and in the middle of his normal afternoon training session, he will kill someone for the first time. He has hunted, and he has played at killing with beasts...but this will be an accident, the Inu overreaching its bounds. This will be the loss of one of his guards; the loss of someone who is his friend."

She turned, and stared directly into Inuyasha's eyes.

"You know from your own experience that youkai emotions are stronger emotions; harder to wake...impossible to shake once woken. Your brother suffers this more than most; he was trained never to show _any_ of it. You witnessed this. But come; if you do not yet believe, let us see how Sesshomaru fares. Tell me, do you think his mother will offer sympathy? Or...what do you think she will do?"

And she shook her head, and turned away, herself, but pointed behind her at destruction waiting to happen.

"_Watch_."

So Inuyasha turned his eyes to a scene on the edge of terrible, and watched his brother raise high an unfamiliar sword.

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! And I'm just doing horrible things to that little guy aren't I? But at least Inuyasha is finally starting to understand that his brother has his own reasons for acting the way he does. And don't forget; all of this is _really_ just lead-up action to the biggest realization: _why_ Sesshomaru hates Inuyasha's mother...and Inuyasha, too. Anyway, I think that's it for now, cause I have to go to work...but it's not TOO bad a cliffie, cause at least you know what's coming! I just have to write it :P More soon!

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	87. Chapter 87

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXVII

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

K: Keck: _to retch; to feel disgust_

The air was hot and still. At Sesshomaru's feet lay six groaning guardsmen. The sword in his hands was slick with gore, but he was unmoving, tightly gripping the hilt.

Only a single opponent was still standing, facing him; a female Inu, the lieutenant who had been left in charge of the small garrison that guarded the _shiro_ in the Inu no Taisho's absence. She had already been wounded in the thigh and in her right arm; she appeared to hold her sword with difficulty, but steadied it with her off hand and did not flinch as Sesshomaru came at her once again.

His voice younger, but still recognizable, Sesshomaru spoke as his sword drew sparks from his opponent's weapon. If Inuyasha had not known better, he would have sworn he heard something faintly teasing in his brother's tones.

"You should yield, Yuugao. You are outmatched."

She came at him with a swift and sudden flurry of blows, making it obvious that the weakness in her right arm had been mostly feigned.

"Your mother has forbidden it, young Lord. I am instructed to bring out the fullness of your power. Do you feel I have done that?"

Sesshomaru only growled in response this time, all his attention on parrying the movement of her sword. Minutes passed; there was no sound but breath and the clang of steel on steel. As time passed, Yuugao showed obvious signs of being pressed, and again began to favor her right hand, wielding her blade two-handed.

Opposite her exhausted stance, Sesshomaru was a different story entirely. There was red at the corner of his eyes, gold light flowing from the edges of his movements. With a snarl, and sudden lunge, he brought his sword down in a vicious movement that caught her sword full on and shattered it into a dozen pieces.

While Yuugao was still staring at her sword in shock, Sesshomaru's blade came back along it's path – but there was nothing to deflect it.

There was a stiff, hot silence broken only by the spurting sound of blood, and with a terrible feeling of understanding that he could not put aside, Inuyasha saw exactly what had happened. It had happened to him, too; it was the thing he lived in constant fear of.

His brother had pushed the Inu too far. He was full youkai, but he was young, his power unsteady and enormous, not yet tied to the firm control that would become so terrifying as he grew older. For a moment, Sesshomaru was still, as the glow faded from his movements and the red from eyes. It was then – only then – that he saw what he had done...and regretted it.

_Infinitely_.

A howl escaped him; twin streams of tears ran down his face. Aimlessly, hopelessly, he reached out toward her body, but then he let out another cry, and turned away, and retched.

Yuugao's body had slumped where she was standing, but her sightless eyes stared at him from across the courtyard, her head especially odd-looking where the stump of her neck seemed to blend into his mother's white-and-red slipper.

Inuyasha looked on in horror as Sesshomaru's mother moved her foot almost idly, and kicked Yuugao's head away from her slipper; he backed away a full three steps as it rolled near him and turned to his own mother, spoke in pleading tones.

"Mother – mother, enough now, mother, I understand – I-"

But Inuyasha's mother spoke to him in a voice utterly cold.

"No. _No_. You do _not_ understand. You, my son, possess your father's stubborn nature in its entirety, and this, I know, is not enough to make clear to you the truth. There is more yet. Watch!"

Reluctant, Inuyasha turned back, and steeled himself for more horrors. Having rid herself of the _obstacle_ impeding her way, Sesshomaru's mother was quick to go to the side of her son...but it was not to offer comfort.

Even Inuyasha no longer suspected that.

"Mother, why is she doing it? Why is she being so terrible to him? He's her _son_!"

Faintly, elegantly, Inuyasha's mother shrugged.

"Perhaps that is the reason. Who can say?"

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words...and anyone who doesn't feel bad for Sesshomaru now is just _heartless_...which says something about his mother. [evil expletives-provoking witch that she is!] And, actually about Inuyasha. Who is finally getting it...although...I mean...like I said – a hammer to the head, this is! On another note...this chapter is dedicated to Smittee; only proper, as it is the longest Alphabet Challenge chapter yet! :D

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	88. Chapter 88

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_White Chrysanthemum: Lamentation, Grief_

"What have I told you about such _ridiculous_ displays? Over a mere guard, no less! What do you hope to gain by such weakness?"

Sesshomaru's mother spat each word at him as if she were throwing stones.

"Have you grown _fond_ of your guards? Did you _like_ this one? How foolish! As if such a low-bred whelp as this could possibly mate the heir of the West – as if she was good enough for anything _but _this! She should be proud to have died, showing your power! She was worth _nothing_ else -"

Sesshomaru's eyes grew red, and redder.

She did not know it, but in insulting Yuugao, Sesshomaru's mother had made a terrible mistake. Sesshomaru _had_ liked her. He was not yet old enough to even contemplate _sex_, much less a mating, but Yuugao had been one of the few among those that had been left at the _shiro_ who would talk to him like a person – despite the risk of his mother's wrath.

Now, because of that, the thing that Inuyasha had recognized was growing more true by the moment. Sesshomaru was losing control of an already-tenuous hold over the Beast that moved him. His heartbeat was pounding in his chest; his face was raw with suppressed emotion, and his voice escaped him in a yell that was closer to a shriek.

"You shut up! You shut up! Don't you talk about Yuugao!"

There was _agony_ in his voice; he had lost all pretense of formality, or dignity. Inuyasha winced to hear it.

"She was my _friend_! She was the _only one_ – and _you_ killed her! _You_ told her to do this to me – this – _this_ – _**this**_!"

And with each _this_, a lash, a _wave_ of power leapt outward from his sword and slashed its way through his mother's flesh. She staggered back, bleeding heavily, but nothing could have prepared her for what happened next.

Loosed of all restraint, fed from a broken heart, Sesshomaru burst the bounds of his humanoid shape in three moments, and then had his teeth wrapped around his mother's body in the next.

Inuyasha's eyes went wide with memory; his brother was nowhere near the size he had been when _they_ were fighting, but he was still twice the height of a man at the shoulder.

Sesshomaru lifted his mother in his teeth, and _shook_ her, and took a deep satisfaction in her screams. They _grew._ When she was silent again, except for heaving breaths, when the odor of her blood had far overpowered the scent of Yuugao's...finally, he tossed her aside.

For a moment, he was still. And then he trembled, and the change-wind swept over him, and he was Sesshomaru again, and twelve; bloody, and unconscious, and even so, his features were still strained with grief.

Clutching a mangled shoulder, exhausted and slow with pain, Sesshomaru's mother stood after a long minute of silence and made her way towards the gate.

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words – and Yay! For Sesshomaru's mother finally getting some of what she deserves. _Some_, I say. Remember, this is Inuyasha's vision of the past, and while it's helping _him_...Sesshomaru still has to come to terms with much of this himself. Which is why he's such a bastard half the time. Next Up: Something slightly happier happens for Sesshomaru, and then something more slightly happier...

Please Review!


	89. Chapter 89

Drabble Collection Alpha

LXXXIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Alstroemeria: Devotion_

Inuyasha's gaze tracked Sesshomaru's mother as she made her slow and steady way past many silent and staring eyes. The confrontation between mother and son seemed to have been long expected...yet it seemed that now that it had finally occurred, the various Inu populating the _shiro_ were unsure of what to do - except for the half dozen who had been under Yuugao's direct command.

The six who had stayed sprawled around Sesshomaru's unconscious body.

Without a word, exchanging only glances with each other, five of them stood and then helped their last comrade to his feet. As one, they looked down at their _young_ _Lord_. As one, their eyes tracked the spray of blood in the dust that had marked the passing of their lieutenant's life.

In the gateway, as if sensing something behind her, Sesshomaru's mother turned, and made as if to go back towards her son. Something between irritation and concern fluttered across her face as she saw the defeated guards standing around Sesshomaru.

Inuyasha could not decipher the expression on her face - perhaps she was thinking how much trouble it would be if angry guardsmen took advantage of her son's _condition_ to end his life - how angry the Inu no Taisho would be if such a thing happened.

Perhaps she was thinking regretful thoughts.

Regardless, as she turned and took a single step back towards her son, the guards stood close around him, blocking his body from her view. They had all been wounded, some more than others, in the training fight that had ended so horribly...but then she, too, had been wounded, or they would not dare to stand against her.

She took a second step back, and six swords were drawn against her. From that distance, one of them spoke to her, warning her away.

"Do not step closer, Lady."

"He is my son! Do you think I would harm him?"

A second one of the guards spoke up.

"Yes."

And a third.

"You are our Lady, but you have gone too far!"

The first guard spoke again, unruffled in the face of her growing rage though surely he knew that even wounded as she was they were still no match for her – as they had been no match for her son.

"We have seen your focus, your _drive_, since the young Lord was old enough to stand on his own. You have pushed him to be more than any pup should be, saying that we cannot know your reasons...and now it has come to this. I cannot imagine that _reasons_ matter any longer against this truth."

He eyed her carefully.

"A message will be sent to the Inu no Taisho, telling him of these events. _You_ must leave now, my lady. It is best."

They took one step towards her, unified, ferocious even though fearful, and finally she began her retreat again. At the threshold, she stopped for a moment and looked back over her shoulder; anger warred with dignity and left her face empty.

"A day will come, soon, when he will _need_ my help; certainly, his father will not come. When my son dies, consumed by the power he has not learned to control – perhaps you will remember this moment then! Soothe your conscience while you may. It will not last."

And she was gone. When she disappeared, the guards seemed to collapse in on themselves, and then one pointed in several directions, obviously giving orders. Two of the group detached themselves, lifted Sesshomaru, and began to carry him inside.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! Bye bye to Sesshou-mama, at least for now...an onward, to slightly more pleasant bits of Sesshomaru's history! Soon we will also be saying good bye to Inuyasha's mama...but not until I figure out who's taking her place :P Possibly Inu-papa again...I'm running out of dead people...or at least dead people who would advise Inuyasha!


	90. Chapter 90

Drabble Collection Alpha

XC

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Lily of the Valley: Return to Happiness_

A pair of the remaining guards went to Yuugao's body, and brought her into the _shiro_ to be tended for her funeral rites. One, who had been the worst wounded, walked over to where her head had come to rest, and lifted it carefully before following the others.

Inuyasha let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, and stared around the empty courtyard for a long minute. Finally, he felt his mother's hand on his arm, comforting and heavy both. Her voice returned to its usual soft tones.

"Our time is almost up, Inuyasha. Come; one more thing, I would show you. A more... pleasant memory."

But Inuyasha stayed still, not responding to her promise.

"She's...she's not going to come back, is she? She's not going to do anything worse?"

His mother smiled faintly, pleased by his apparent concern but unwilling to read much into it. She had spoken of his stubbornness, and she believed what she had said. She had seen evidence of it far too many times to believe that his new and more sympathetic attitude would carry him through his own recent past, once he was reminded of it.

Still...progress was progress, and there was no reason not to answer his question.

"No, Inuyasha. She is not coming back; that is the worst of what she will do to your brother. That she does not return...that is its _own_ problem."

And with those mysterious words, the world became muddied; a curtain was pulled over the scene, and then withdrawn. Inuyasha stared around himself for a moment, disoriented, and then realized what had changed. They were _inside_ the _shiro_, in a luxuriously appointed room where his brother lay, unconscious..and then blinking slowly into wakefulness.

"It has been four days, Inuyasha. Your brother wakes now for the first time since his ordeal; he must make difficult decisions, but he is capable - his will is fierce, and soon, he will find trustworthy allies."

Inuyasha saw the depth of Sesshomaru's exhaustion in the languid nature of his stretch; it appeared to take him three whole minutes to remember the terrible reason why he was laying there, in his bed, with no memory of having gone to sleep. A glimmer of tears became visible in his eyes and then almost immediately disappeared. The expression of guilty grief on his face was replaced by one of furious anger.

"_Mother..._"

Power rumbled uncertainly in him, lit his skin with fragrant youki that roamed without a target and then subsided, sensing no threat, as his rage faded and was replaced by a mask that Inuyasha knew well; the mask of stillness, a veneer of icy calm.

For a quarter of an hour, he sat without moving, without blinking...and then he stood, and began to dress. He wore the white trimmed with gold that he had worn each time Inuyasha had seen this young version of him, but he pulled the clothes over his shoulders with an air of distaste. With a convulsive motion he reached out for his sword, cleaned now and shining as if nothing had happened, and thrust it into his sash.

Quickly, he stepped out through his door, and down a long hallway. Two guards, part of the six remaining from Yuugao's group, fell in behind him from where they had been standing at attention outside his door. Sesshomaru stopped at the entrance to a practice gallery and waited until he was noticed.

It did not take long.

When he turned and began to walk away, his following had grown from two, to six.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! I wrote the next chapter first, and then realized I had forgotten in between bits...so, here they are! More tomorrow, or perhaps later...but I don't want to be aggravating by posting too many chapters at once :P

Please Review!


	91. Chapter 91

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Magnolia: Perseverance, Nobility, Dignity_

In an empty corridor, Sesshomaru turned and fixed each of the Inu following him with a golden glare, as if he could test them that way, tell something about them. Whatever he saw, whatever he learned, Sesshomaru was apparently satisfied, because he turned and continued down the hallway.

He led them to the Council Chamber, a large room dominated by a hardwood table and the enormous chair at its head. It had been kept ready despite the years of his father's absence; without so much as a self conscious twitch, Sesshomaru sat himself in his father's chair.

"Sit, all of you."

Inuyasha snickered a bit at the sight of his brother, still small at only twelve, dwarfed by the immensity of their father's Council chair. He looked _tiny_, with carved Inu baring their fangs above his head...but Inuyasha fell silent quickly. Despite the incongruity in size, Sesshomaru was poised, collected. His arms sat on the great carved paws and claws of armrests as though they belonged there; he did not seem in the least uncomfortable, and Inuyasha frowned, thinking about it.

Not even a half hour before, he had been on the edge of crying or screaming or both...and now _this_? It was _unnatural_, even for a demon.

Scowling, Inuyasha supposed this was what his mother had meant for him to realize all along. His ears pricked forward as his brother spoke, his voice quiet but firm.

"The six of you are now _my_ guard."

Inuyasha saw each of the listening Inu sit a little straighter. There were indrawn breaths, but no words, and Sesshomaru nodded and then continued in harder tones...too hard, too old for a pup of twelve.

"My loss was your loss; for my lack of control, I ask forgiveness."

There was a screech as one of the youkai sitting across from Sesshomaru stood quickly, shoving back his chair with his legs.

"Young lord, do not claim fault for Yuugao's death! Only your Lady Mother is responsible!"

Sesshomaru's features did not so much as flicker.

"Perhaps."

Under his stare, the guard who had stood sank bank into his chair, flushed with anger or embarrassment or both...and then stood again, abruptly, as Sesshomaru addressed him.

"Your name is Yoshio."

"Yes, young lord -"

"You will take Yuugao's position as lieutenant, and leader of this garrison. Tell me – do you think you are capable of training me?"

The newly named lieutenant paused for only a moment before he shook his head.

"No, young lord. If you wish my honest opinion, I do not think any of those who were left to guard you would dare face you now. Your Lord Father could certainly be of help to you, or...or your Lady Mother, but -"

"But my father has not left his battlefields in a dozen years, and my mother..."

Tightness crept across Sesshomaru's face.

"I will not ask _anything_ of her."

He drew in a deep breath. Inuyasha saw a moment of uncertainty on his brother's features that wavered into stillness and sharp decision, suffusing his aura with cold.

"It seems I will have to do this alone."

The guards exchanged startled and fearful glances.

"Young lord, such a thing hasn't been done before! Even your father required aid in mastering his power -"

"That may be so, but..."

His eyes gleamed.

"Once, there was a youkai who mastered himself, a demon who held his power tightly; the first among us. His path – I _will_ find it. I will make it _mine_."

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! This chapter was delayed by me trying to draw Sesshomaru in daddy's chair with nearby guards... and failing because _**I can't draw _ **_and then further delayed by self-directed anger...for the same reason. Stupid pens! And pencils! And markers and crayons and paints and programs! Stupid lack of ability to portray two and three dimensional visual art forms! AHH! Ahem. _Anyway_...I present Tiny Sesshomaru, Imperious and Dwarfed by Throne. In words, since...well, see above. :P

Please Review!


	92. Chapter 92

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Nasturtium: Conquest, Patriotism_

"My lord! You cannot mean that!"

The words were torn from Yoshio's mouth. Sesshomaru smiled almost grimly. It was the first time any of them had ever called him anything but _young lord_ or _young master_; it would not be the last.

The abrupt address only reinforced his will.

"I do. _I_ will find my _own_ way. Leave me now. Oh – and perhaps you might amuse yourselves taking out my mother's _trash_."

His eyes had focused, not on the door, but beyond it; all six of them understood immediately what he had implied; three of them grinned.

They did what he asked; they had no choice, but without a word passing between them, two stationed themselves outside the door. Two chased down eavesdroppers who had been standing motionless in the hallway – for a moment too long.

The remaining two turned in opposite directions, and walked out of sight.

Inuyasha's mother spoke as they did so.

"They have gone to get rid of those who actively report to Sesshomaru's mother, and not his father...as they themselves had done, _before_. But not now. Yuugao was one of them; she had fought her way up to her lieutenant's spot through power and prowess, and they loved and respected her for that. Sesshomaru's mother, they only feared – and now they hate her...and fear her son more. With his apology, his strength, his declaration, he has won them."

She eyed the door behind them speculatively, contemplating the young Inu behind it.

"I have often wondered what would have happened if your father had died during these battles. With his death, the alliance that fought against him would have dispersed, torn apart by petty internal feuds. Sesshomaru would have grown up with these six to protect him and his own drive to fuel him...and perhaps _his_ life, and the lives of those around him, would have been very different."

She sighed, and shook her head slowly.

"As it is, only a few more years remain before the Inu no Taisho will return to his son. He will be surprised with what he finds, and in his surprise he will set in motion a series of events that lead inexorably to your birth...and his own death."

Inuyasha stared at her wide-eyed, and she spoke quickly to defuse the thoughts she could see forming in his head.

"There is nothing I can say which will change the truth of events, Inuyasha. In the end, if I sometimes wish your father had never met me, it is only for _his_ sake...because perhaps then, he would not have died."

And she smiled, and reached out to hug Inuyasha. He sensed finality in her embrace, and knew that their time was up.

"But then I would not have you, my son, who I love, and always _have_ loved, more than my own life."

She smiled, and Inuyasha closed his eyes, breathing softness and his mother's scent. Was it stupid of him to have missed her so much that now, her leaving him was like her death all over again? For she _was_ leaving, even as she pressed her lips against his forehead. He could feel the shape of her spirit dissolving in his arms, becoming particles of light as fine and weightless as the dust on a butterfly's wing.

"Good-bye, my son. Learn well the lessons that are sent to you. Grow in strength, and grow in wisdom...before the day comes when I see you again."

"Good-bye, mother..."

And for the third time, Inuyasha found himself alone in darkness.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words; phew! I feel as if I might have taken a little too much time with this, but at the same time I know it's going to be pretty important later on – so bear with me! Inu's sojourn with his mama is now finished...and so we leave him in limbo for a while and return to Sesshomaru and Kagome (who is probably tired of standing and staring at an island by now!)

Please Review!


	93. Chapter 93

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Crocus: Cheerfulness, Gladness_

Kagome took a few minutes to stretch and massage stiff muscles as Sesshomaru descended from the air and landed on a smooth patch of grass beneath overhanging shade. She was surprised to see so much greenery, so dense and so lush. She knew they had come far to the north, and even though it was not yet mid-September, the air was more than _chilly_; it was winter cold.

Sesshomaru was frowning as he looked at her, apparently concerned by her shivering, but behind him there was suddenly a shift of color, brightness-in-motion. Wide-eyed with surprise, Kagome saw that it was a girl – a _human_ girl, a child of no more than seven.

She felt faint under the weight of a thousand thoughts, and then the girl spoke. Her voice was not quiet or timid or subservient or fearful but exuberant, glad, rich with excited joy. She did not seem terrified of Sesshomaru, but rather happy to see him.

"Sesshomaru-sama, Sesshomaru-sama, you are returned! Who is the pretty lady? Rin has seen her before..."

The girl peered at Kagome for a moment, and then turned back to Sesshomaru.

"Is she for Rin, Sesshomaru-sama?"

"No, Rin. She is mine; but perhaps she will spend some time with you. For now, her son will be your companion. Kagome?"

Startled, Kagome peered down at Shippou, who was looking through the gap in her arms with interested eyes. A _girl,_ _**here**__?_ Even if she was Sesshomaru's, she was cute and pretty and seemed nice enough...

"Would you like to go play with...with Rin, Shippou?"

"Yeah! But – but when will I see you again, Kagome?"

It was Sesshomaru who answered.

"Kit, Rin will bring you with her when it is time for the evening meal. You will see your mother then."

"Uh...okay!"

From beside him, the little girl hissed sharply in displeasure, and elbowed him in the ribs.

"Hey! What?"

"You must always say, _yes Sesshomaru-sama_, or _no Sesshomaru-sama_, not _uh okay_! You should not be rude to Sesshomaru-sama."

Shippou's eyes widened comically, and he took a step back, nodding.

"Okay, okay."

And then he turned to Sesshomaru, and bowed swiftly.

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama."

He looked back out of the corner of his eye, and was pleased to see the girl's face returning to its brilliant smile.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama! Rin will see you later!"

Kagome blinked -

And then the girl was gone, with Shippou trotting at her heels; bare feet slip-slapping, hair bouncing, smile bright and gorgeous as only youth can be – but Kagome's shattered thoughts did not go back together; the world continued to not make sense.

_He's a monster – heartless, cruel. A _real_ demon. I __**know**__ that! He took me because he had too; he kept me to hurt Inuyasha, he...he's __**Sesshomaru!**_

But he had that girl, and she was _smiling,_ and he had brought Kagome here, had saved her from Inuyasha_._

Suddenly she found herself wondering if Inuyasha had ever told her the truth...about anything at all. She turned to look at Sesshomaru, and saw that he was waiting quietly, his eyes on her but no impatience in them.

A gust of wind from the north set her trembling. Kagome heard a scolding growl, and then found herself being wrapped in soft fur for the second time, as Sesshomaru drew her close to his body.

"What did I tell you, silly woman? You are too fragile to be out here and undressed."

Before she could move, or say a word, he lifted her.

"Come."

* * *

><p>AN: Ah, there we go! 600 words! Now, sorry about the wait, but it will be worth it, because it was caused by me having to write backwards from 100. Yep...that's right. I wrote the chapters _backward _from _100_. From 99, technically, because the chapter that was going to be 100 has been moved forward significantly. But that still means there's...six more chapters that are nearly ready! Go me! :P Also, I have been informed recently that some people are _most_ displeased by a Rin who speaks oddly, and/or in the third person. But considering how young she was when she was found by Sesshomaru, that she is a low-class orphan who has been raised by a not-very-talkative demon, I think Rin _would_ speak oddly - at least at first. And I have fun making Kagome or Shippou teach her things :P Now, onward!

Please Review!


	94. Chapter 94

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Jasmine: Amiability, Elegance_

It was so much warmer being close to Sesshomaru that Kagome did not complain at the abruptness of his sudden hold on her. This new, concerned-and-protecting Sesshomaru was interesting, and kind of... _nice_.

Despite the fact that he was _Sesshomaru_, someone she would expect to be less than patient with human weaknesses, he said nothing about her obvious vulnerability and instead had wrapped her in his own fluffy..._something_.

Inuyasha had _never_ been so kind; he griped constantly about slow humans and weak humans and food-water-shelter-_sleep_ needing humans...and then weak humans again.

Kagome sighed.

_Maybe Sesshomaru is just better at hiding it. Inuyasha is loud about **everything**!_

She still found herself tempted to ask Sesshomaru what he was doing inviting her here, and why he was doing it... and also about the fluffy thing – but she thought that if she used the words _fluffy_ and his name in the same sentence, she _probably_ wouldn't live to the end of it.

She did _not_ ask.

Unaware of Kagome's rather_ odd_ moment of inner turmoil, Sesshomaru turned towards a white stone staircase of many steps that led upwards towards the palace on the mountain. There were no walls, just many buildings that came into view one after another, roofs red and black and gold and white rising with many ridges as Sesshomaru mounted the steps.

She got the impression that he was moving slowly for her benefit, and everyone once in a while he would speak, imparting some bit of history or telling her what a certain building was for – and so, for a white-roofed hall of many pillars:

"That is where my father announced his mating."

And for a long, low building of gilded wood:

"That is the Hall of Cursed Swords."

_That_ incited a question or two.

* * *

><p>AN: Mwaha. Yes it does...so onward! (also...300 words!)

Please Review!


	95. Chapter 95

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Tea Rose: I'll Remember Always_

"Cursed swords? Why would you keep..."

Kagome's words trailed off and Sesshomaru eyed her, as if trying to decide whether he should answer.

"The remains of Toukijin are there now...and one other sword of mine. There are several of my father's blades...and his father's – and _his _father's."

He looked away from her face.

"The weapons themselves have no value. The lessons they commemorate..._that_ is why they are kept."

"The...lessons? What lessons do your swords commemorate?"

His features tightened, and for a moment she regretted having spoken...but then he looked down at her, and stole her breath with the fierceness of his gaze.

"Toukijin reminds me to rely on _nothing_ but myself. The other..."

In one moment many things moved across his face.

"The other remains to remind me of a terrible mistake. To remind me...of a friend. Kagome..."

The look in his eyes did not change.

"You asked me before if I could love you."

She stared at him, flushed quickly crimson. Where had _that_ come from?

"I – I only asked you that because...because I was – distraught! And -"

There was suddenly a finger pressed against her lips.

"_Listen_, Kagome. You asked me; do you wish to know?"

Afraid that if she opened her mouth, nothing would come out, Kagome nodded faintly.

"There is a memory that this place brings to me, a memory that I should have thought of before."

He stared at the Hall of Cursed Swords as if he could see through its gilded walls, and then looked back at her.

"Your answer is yes, mate."

Something hot and almost sickening swooped through Kagome's belly, and suddenly she _couldn't_ speak, even if she had wanted to.

"I do not know if I _will_ love you, but I am...capable."

She pressed her palm flat against his chest, felt the beating of his heart hard and rapid beneath her hand, and finally spoke, very quietly.

"I think I knew that, all along."

She was bold enough to nestle closer to his chest, out of the wind, as he continued up the stairs.

It was getting hard to remember that he was dangerous. Every time he spoke, he seemed to open a little more to her – like some rare and deadly blossom, peeling back its petals to seek light from the moon.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! And that, dear readers, is why Sesshomaru has a Hall of Cursed Swords. To prod him into making SHOCKING REVELATIONS. Who wants to guess what sword it was that spurred his "moment" - anyone? Anyone? :D Come on...guess! :P

Please Review!


	96. Chapter 96

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Lotus: Mystery, Truth_

As they attained the interior of the Main Hall, Sesshomaru brought Kagome to a quiet and empty room and set her on a chair behind a screen. She stared around her in wonder, and stayed very still, almost afraid to touch anything.

The walls were smooth dark woods, the panels inlaid with gold and bones and ivory. Over the door was an enameled figure that she knew well, the unleashed shape of the Inu; on either side of it, and to both sides of the door had been painted the flower crest of Sesshomaru's line.

"Mate, my Council will wish to meet with me; considering your presence, it would not be prudent for me to ignore their request. Anticipating it will be better still; I am sure they will have many... questions."

Kagome looked down at her hands.

"I'm assuming you don't want me to come with you?"

For a moment Sesshomaru looked startled, as if he hadn't considered the idea – and then he shook his head.

"No. Not now. Later I will introduce you, but you are not even dressed, and -"

"What are you talking about? Of course I'm dressed!"

She plucked at her shirt, as if that was proof; his expression became...strange.

"Those are your _clothes_, mate? Truly?"

"Yes..."

He was intrigued despite himself.

"Mate, where are you _from_?"

She smiled faintly and shook her head. Of all the questions for him to ask _now_!

"_Very_ far away, Sesshomaru."

Her expression turned wistful for a moment, but she shook it off quickly. Sesshomaru studied her closely, greatly confused by her words. It was obvious that she was Japanese, but he had traveled over the whole nation, had explored all the islands where Japanese humans lived, and he had nowhere found people like his mate.

"Tell me how it is that you speak the truth, Kagome...and yet at the same time, _cannot be_."

She winced a little.

"Um...well -"

"Mate-"

The warning in his tone was obvious, and she sighed. She had hoped not to have to reveal her own past. She had _hoped_ that he would not be interested in the origins of a _mere human_.

_I can only tell him the truth, too. He'll know if I say anything else, and he wouldn't be happy, either..._

She sighed again, and shrugged, and then just said it.

"I'm from the future, Sesshomaru."

He stared at her blankly; she clarified.

"I haven't traveled in space, but I _am _from very far away. Four hundred sixty-odd years counts as far, I think. I've never bothered to find out _exactly_ how many..."

Sesshomaru took a deep breath, looked at her closely. She waited patiently, her hands folded in her lap. When he spoke, his voice was oddly flat.

"This is truth, but...mate, this is something I do not understand."

He looked uncomfortable with the admission; her lips twitched.

"You aren't the only one!"

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! Poor Sesshomaru, just when he thinks he has a handle on things...aha! The second sword hint: I've already written about Sesshomaru using it!

Please Review!


	97. Chapter 97

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Fir: Time, Evaluation_

Sesshomaru was uncertain what to say in the face of Kagome's admission. It was...bizarre, totally beyond his experience. And yet...the _truth_ she was speaking was undeniable. She _believed_ what she was saying; the more he thought about it...so did he.

He had been _everywhere_; he had seen no one like her, or anything that belonged to her. That pink contraption – the yellow bag – the things_ inside_ it...

"Kagome, you are too complicated for your own good. You should be grateful that my Council are my companions, and not only my advisors."

She frowned.

"Couldn't you just -"

"I will not lie to them, Kagome, and if it were any other youkai, the choice now before me would be kill you or kill them – because any other youkai would _never_ believe the story I have to tell them now."

And he scowled ferociously at her, and then pointed imperiously at her clothes.

"You will stay here, and you will be dressed _properly_ – and then you may go outside. Do not get lost, and do not venture beyond the Inner River. You would find it...dangerous."

Her brow wrinkled; that did _not_ sound promising.

"Dangerous? Why?"

He explained patiently, as if it should be obvious.

"You are a human miko in an Inu fortress. You are meat to the others until I tell them otherwise; I have not yet had time to do so."

When she only continued to stare at him, he sighed, and shook his head.

"Never mind. This wing should be safe; it has not been used since..."

His face darkened, and he shook his head again.

"It has not been used in a long time. Stay here; I will come to dress you myself later."

At the door, he turned suddenly and came back to her side – and Kagome found her lap full of fluffy _something_ again.

"To keep you warm, mate."

And then he was gone.

Kagome sat quietly for a while, wrapped in fur and glad of it; there was no fire in these rooms.

_In fact_...

As she looked around, and then stood and walked around, she realized Sesshomaru hadn't been kidding. The room was almost bare, and coated in a thick layer of dust. Idly, she traced a finger along the back of a silver-handled brush, and then set out to explore.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! And now...come two short chapters to end the night!

Please Review!


	98. Chapter 98

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Bell of Ireland: Good Luck_

In the corner of an abandoned room in the empty wing, Kagome found a book.

She held it thoughtfully in her hands; on the cloth cover, sewn in delicate and faded embroidery, was a mythic scene dominated by a golden Inu, and a title, or perhaps an owners mark.

"The Pillow Book of Izayoi-hime..."

She frowned, mouthed the words again. That name – it was...familiar, but she couldn't place it. Something from school? Perhaps a _monogatari_, a folktale?

"_Izayoi_-_hime_. I wonder who you were?"

Curious, she opened the little book to a random page and began to read.

* * *

><p>AN: Mwahaha...I have an evil plan. It may get REALLY evil...or only stay _slightly_ evil...not sure yet. But wickedness either way...

Please Review!


	99. Chapter 99

Drabble Collection Alpha

XCIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Gardenia: Secret Love_

"_I was like a pearl in his hand."_

_In China, daughters say this about their fathers. It is a commemoration of a precious moment, when not many such moments are theirs._

_**I** use it to speak of my forbidden lover, but still..._

_This, I understand. _

_I am writing to tell you that it is worth any hardship, if you can find love. _

_I am writing to tell you that you can find it, even when you are not looking in the right place._

_Even when you are looking in the **wrong** place._

_Even...when you are not looking at all. _

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...and once again Inuyasha's mother makes her presence known from beyond the grave, but this time, in writing! But of course...Kagome doesn't know who Izayoi-hime is. _Yet_. And no one else could possibly be more qualified to teach Kagome about loving a demon, regardless of how Sesshomaru feels about her.

Please Review!


	100. Chapter 100

Drabble Collection Alpha

C

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Carnation: Fascination_

Touched by words that seemed close to her heart, words that reached out to her, Kagome turned to the front cover of the book and touched the faint embroidery, the precise, perfect stitches. Then she opened it again, and ran her fingers over the first page, smoothing it against the others as she began from the beginning:

_I sit quietly, and observe them all. _

_It is best for me to occupy myself by writing, so that I need not appear rude while avoiding glances and conversation; it is not hard, since none of them want to look at me, never mind speak at me. Few gazes linger - though I detect hostility in all the eyes that **do** settle on me..._

_None of them frighten me, though. Not the way they would if I was alone; here, I am better protected than I am even at home. _

_Youkai they might be, and angry that I sit among them...but **all** of them tremble at the feet of my love. _

_I have wondered at the reasons for this, but he insists on showing me only half of his nature. I am banned from his Council Chamber, from the presence of his advisors. I am not allowed beyond the Inner River; I may not traverse the Silver Path, and I have not been permitted into the Pavilion of Dark Nights and Harmony...though it looks beautiful from the lake shore, and the music - !_

_Despite this I know there is cruelty in my love and in all of them, even when they smile and bow so elegantly; in men, I have seen this cruelty, and they are only men, not youkai._

_But I cannot tell him I know this; it would hurt him when he has gone to such lengths to hide his darker nature from me. It is painful to me, that he thinks I could fear him; it pains me that because of the way our lives are ordered I will never be able to tell him anything else. _

_Perhaps if I had recognized in the beginning what he was trying to do, it might be different now, but I was only a foolish woman then, and not yet wise to the ways of youkai. I could have told him I desired mystery, and danger; that I would rather be wed to a knife than the fools my father considered for me...that his grace and his violence equally attracted me. _

_I know that he loves me, but sometimes I look at him and find myself wondering if he doubts **my** love. _

_I wish... I had someone to talk to. My fingers are tired from holding the brush, and my love will surely laugh at the ink stains...but there are no women here and I was not permitted to bring those who have been my companions at home. _

_One human, he says, is almost a disaster. **Many** would be a catastrophe. _

_But maybe someday there will be someone, and I will read to her from this book and remember, and teach her, and say: _

"_Now, you will know the nature of youkai, as I did not. It is cruelty and kindness in tension; lust and blood-fury battling constantly with one another. They live in the grey space that lingers between the darkness and the light. They are beings of beating hearts, but they do not want us to know it."_

_But then, perhaps she will be wiser than I, and already know this. _

_If that is so I hope she will be kind, and comfort me._

Kagome dropped the little book into her lap and stared blankly at the wall. She knew who this book belonged to now; it had been stupid of her not to remember in the first place.

What other woman had ever been here but Inuyasha'smother?

_Izayoi-hime. _

Vaguely, she remembered the little flea, Myoga, making reference to her as such before Inuyasha had squashed him, silencing a history he did not wish to relive. She scowled at the thought, because she had no desire to occupy herself with thinking about _him_...but at the same time, she was terribly curious about this woman, _Izayoi-hime_, who had loved a demon – Inuyasha's father, and Sesshomaru's - the Inu no Taisho.

She re-read the final lines on the page, and felt sudden compassion for the woman who had written those words. She knew that Inuyasha's mother was long dead; he had told her himself, though not the circumstances of her death.

Her fingers traced the delicate characters; she murmured quietly to an empty room.

"I _did_ know that, Izayoi-hime. But I don't think I'm wise. I wish you were still alive, so I could comfort you..."

She closed her eyes.

"And so you could comfort _me_."

* * *

><p>AN: This took a while, because it's 800 words, but...yay, 800 words, and the 100th chapter! I had to decide how to finesse the relationship between Izayoi and Inu-no-Taisho...but now I have an idea of what I want, so I can progress more swiftly. This book will swiftly become precious to Kagome...but then there are also things she can do that Izayoi could never dream of. Heh. Anyway, up next is Sesshomaru and his Council...of six! Anyone want to guess who they are? This should be LOTS easier than the sword :P I hereby dedicate this chapter to Jawnsen, who was suffering in withdrawal :p Suffering is no good!

Please Review!


	101. Chapter 101

Drabble Collection Alpha

CI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Jonquil: Violent Sympathy, Desire For Affection Returned_

On his way through the quiet corridors that lay between the abandoned west wing and his Council Chamber, Sesshomaru arrived at a single, simple decision:

He would keep the woman, his mate; Kagome. He would keep her as she was, and he would _not_ kill her.

She was _power_. Once he had touched it, once he had made himself aware of it, he was no longer able to ignore it. It swirled around her like fog, like mist, far too much energy to stay trapped beneath her skin. She was the only female he had ever met who showed _anything_ like the strength that was necessary to temper his will, despite the fact that she was, in many ways, his exact opposite – in flesh, in temperament, in nature – human to his youkai, sweetness to his cruelty, light to his darkness.

But she was more than _just_ _power_; she had passion, conviction, pride, intelligence, beauty – she was, in all ways but one, a female he would have _demanded_ for his mate. If only she was not _human_...

But even there, he was forced to halt his thinking. She was human, yes, and that had always meant trouble for youkai of power – like him. But she was _miko_, more than just some woman; she bore a holy power the equal of which he had never seen or heard of. Perhaps it was _because_ she was miko that she was a match for him – because no other youki would ever approach _his_ strength.

The shikon no tama became pure at just Kagome's touch; the demon Naraku had found his final home in hell because of her, and though he hated to admit it Sesshomaru knew that was no small feat. Even _he_ had failed at extinguishing that evil; even Inuyasha, wielding a power through Tetsusaiga that Sesshomaru had never thought to see, had not been able to fight off their enemy. But _Kagome_...

He frowned, thinking back. He should have seen it then, the enormity of her aura; but he had had no reason to pay attention to Inuyasha's miko...

And he scowled, because that thought brought into his awareness the other thing that disturbed him.

Kagome was his, yes; but that was so merely because of a..._technicality_. Because she had been given a choice between _him_, and death.

That was no longer enough.

Again, he frowned. He could make his own decisions, but all of that rested on a foundation as unsteady as sand. What would she think, his miko, his mate? What were her desires – what did _she _want?

What he wanted – that was, like his decision, _simple_. It was as he had told her: he wanted _everything_. He wanted more than her body, which was already his and would be until her death; he wanted _her, _breathing and bleeding, heart and soul.

There was _something_ about her; something that called to him, reaching feelings he had hidden since he was very small. Feelings he had learned were dangerous; feelings that led inevitably to pain, and loss – because no one, _no one_, lives forever.

With a growl, he continued on his way, sliding aside doors with more force than was necessary, clearing a path before him with the projected unease of his aura.

The problem was not that he didn't know what the _something _was – oh no, it was not that.

The problem was that he knew all too well; and he knew that this _something_ would lead to _nothing_ but trouble.

To use her, even to want her, that was not so dangerous.

To _care_ forher, though...

A grimace twisted his features.

He could keep her in his bed, kill her when he tired of her, throw her body at his brother's feet.

He _could_...but...he no longer _wanted_ to -

And that was the most damning thing of all. The thing that would destroy him if anyone learned it; the thing that would extinguish her brilliant light like the most casual twinkle of flame.

_To care is to fear, and to fear is to be made vulnerable._

It had been his mother's lesson; and had he not learned it well?

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words! This chapter...did not cooperate. Bad chapter! Neither did life – having lost my job in the last week, some priorities have obviously shifted, and the updates will probably be much slower and more sporadic than previously...have to find work...arg.

Please Review!


	102. Chapter 102

Drabble Collection Alpha

CII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Violet: Simplicity, Faithfulness_

With a snap of his wrist, Sesshomaru wrenched aside the door to his Council Chamber, bracing himself for the outcry that was sure to come.

He nearly toppled over himself when said outcry never occurred; instead, six grinning faces waited for him inside, and he wondered at the obvious pleasure on them; was it not only him, but the whole world that had gone mad?

And then Yoshio, the Captain of Sesshomaru's Guard and the Head of his Council, stood and spoke in greeting.

"Welcome, my lord! We have been awaiting you since the whispers began, saying you have brought a _guest_..."

The complete lack of receptivity in Sesshomaru's face for any teasing quieted Yoshio almost immediately. These six – they had been near him since he was born, had witnessed his greatest accomplishments, and his greatest lapses...and had remained loyal to him, regardless.

They were friends, as much as anyone had been since that most terrible day, but in this matter he could not allow lightness.

Sesshomaru decided to get the worst of this over with quickly, and seated himself in his customary chair at the head of the table.

"So, my entire fortress is alive with rumor."

The giddiness went out of the atmosphere at once, dispelled by the chill of his voice.

"The _truth_ is that I have taken a mate."

All of their mouths dropped open in shock. Sesshomaru looked down at his claws, as if bored.

"Her name is Kagome; she is a human miko, and she is the only female I have ever met with a power that might make her my equal. She is in the West Wing, waiting."

Five minutes later, they still had not recovered; several minutes after _that_, Yoshio finally managed to make sensible words leave his mouth.

"My lord – my lord, is that _wise_?"

Sesshomaru growled; for a moment, there was a flicker of red in his eyes.

"Wise? No...no - to bring her here may be the most foolish thing I have ever done. But I had no choice; she is my _mate_."

Eyes widened as he repeated himself and the meaning of his words became clear.

"Do you understand? She is not here for pleasure, not as companion, not as diversion or distraction. Because of my half-brother – because of Inuyasha, I have a human woman as my mate."

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words...and Council meeting begins! I was having issues deciding whether I should alternate back and forth between Kagome and Sesshomaru, but it made everything confusing, so instead I will do a few chapters at a time for each of them. More...now!

Please Review!


	103. Chapter 103

Drabble Collection Alpha

CIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Stephanotis: Good Luck, Desire To Travel_

Sesshomaru leaned his head back in his chair and laughed lowly, a sound empty of humor, a release he allowed himself only because he was _here_, in this room, facing these few whom he trusted.

After a moment, he recovered himself and spoke in a voice lower than his laughter.

"The terrible thing is that if she was not human, she would be _perfect_. Already, I can tell this, and I have only had her by my side for days."

He looked up, his eyes growing in gold glow.

"What is _worse_ is that if not for Inuyasha – if not for that half-breed _whelp_, I would not know. I would never have guessed. It was because of his _disobedience _that she could not help but be mine - but she will never again be his. _Never again_."

Sesshomaru saw several of them lifting eyebrows; only Akihito, the youngest, spoke.

"My lord?"

And Yoshio growled and nudged his subordinate.

"Alpha's Right, 'Hito. The hanyou is the only kin left to our lord on his father's side; all that is left of our lord's Pack. If he mated the miko...stupid bastard."

And the Captain shook his head.

"He was _forbidden_."

Sesshomaru watched the exchange expressionlessly, without confirming Yoshio's words; it was unnecessary. He gazed down the length of the Council table, and met the eyes of each Inu, briefly, and then looked down at his hands.

"One day, I will need to decide if I should punish or praise Inuyasha for disregarding my order."

Yoshio, always testing, spoke lightly.

"Not reward him, my lord?"

Sesshomaru glowered.

"He still lives, does he not?"

Yoshio shrugged.

"If you say so, my lord."

And then he leaned forward on his hands and pierced Sesshomaru with a serious stare.

"In all seriousness, my lord, I now ask - what would you have us do? Do you want us to protect her?"

Sesshomaru shook his head once, sharply.

"No. I will not make my father's mistake. But I _will_ need your help. There is...one other thing, about my mate..."

His words trailed off into silence. He was unsure how to broach the subject of Kagome's _unusual __origin_, but it was something that needed to be done and the sooner the better.

The Inu seated beside Yoshio chose that moment to let out a noise that sounded distinctly like a snort.

"She is human, she is miko, she is stolen from your brother...and there is something _more_? My lord-"

"Musashi!"

Yoshio's rebuke, delivered in a warning tone, quieted the other Inu. Sesshomaru's gaze passed from his Captain to the one called Musashi. His words, precisely uttered and without excess elaboration, still came out harshly.

"My mate has traveled not from the east or west, but from the future. She does not belong to this time. She has crossed centuries to be by my side."

There was complete and total silence after _that_.

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! Ah, silence...those poor Inu! Imagine walking into a board meeting and your boss says "Hi, this is my new secretary. My brother made her _his_ secretary, so I had no choice but to hire her...oh, and she's from the future, by the way..." HA! So funny...or maybe I'm just messed up :P More probably tomorrow; I am losing my internet now due to strains of heat. Do they have internet in Antarctica? Because if they do...I'm moving.

Please Review!


	104. Chapter 104

Drabble Collection Alpha

CIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Amaryllis: Pride, Determination_

As the silence continued, and then grew heavy, Sesshomaru fixed each of his Council with a dark and serious glare.

"You see my difficulty, I assume? My mate is the ultimate outsider; not only is she not youkai, not only is she _human_, but even her humanity is..._different_. She has no experience with the world that will be hers now; she has lived in this era for several years, but by her own admission there are many things that she does not understand...and more than many, now that she is no longer among her own kind."

Slowly, as each one accepted the necessary truth – that Sesshomaru believed this, absurd as it seemed, and therefore they, too, must – there were nods from around the table.

"Suggestions are more than welcome; I am...at a loss with what to do with her, now that she is here. She is powerful, strong; that cannot be denied. But strength will not be enough to keep her safe; power will not erase the impurity of her blood; many eyes will be on her, and all of them concealing dangerous thoughts."

Akihito looked up, puzzlement obvious on his face.

"But I don't understand - why have you brought her here, my lord? Surely you could have waited until she was...better prepared?"

Four of the others nodded in agreement with this question, but Sesshomaru focused on the one who did not.

"Shizuka."

"My lord."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow.

"You have nothing to say?"

Black haired and green eyed, Shizuka looked nothing like the other youkai; he was not blood-kin to Sesshomaru like all the others, but instead had long before bound himself by oath and service to Sesshomaru's father...and then to Sesshomaru himself. He had been second-in-command to Yoshio for as long as he had been Captain of the guard – and before that, when he was a lieutenant of the fortress garrison only.

He had been second in command to Yuugao, Yoshio's predecessor, and second in command to _her_ predecessor – never leading himself, but always lending his strength where needed. His face bore lines, the occasional wrinkle, marking him as one who had passed at least his first millennia.

It was Yoshio Sesshomaru had chosen to command – almost on a whim, because of his presence of mind on a day of trauma.

But it was Shizuka Sesshomaru trusted most; Shizuka, who had helped him learn to control his terrible power, when all others had run in fear...

"My lord..."

He spoke slowly, choosing his words with great care.

"My lord, I do not question why you have brought this woman here. She is your mate; therefore, here is where she belongs. These...other issues...strange as they may be, they are fortuitous for us."

Sesshomaru leaned back in his chair, while the other five Inu turned to gape.

"Continue."

"Yes, my lord. I say fortuitous, because though your mate is human, she is miko; and though she is a human miko, she is not of our time. Thus, she is made less vulnerable, by her power; thus, she brings no worry with her, by her estrangement from her own kind. Tell me, my lord...in her _dislocation_, your mate is alone, yes?"

Sesshomaru hesitated, then nodded.

"I believe so, yes."

"Then she is alone, without family or clan to war for her or her honor; do not forget that it was such interference, and not the woman herself, which proved fatal to -"

"Yes."

Sesshomaru cut Shizuka off mid-sentence; he _hated_ this subject.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words of a chapter for r0o, who bribed me with c0okies! Who can resist c0okies? :p But yay, Shizuka makes a happy point...something good happening to poor Sesshomaru for once.

Please Review!


	105. Chapter 105

Drabble Collection Alpha

CV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_White Lily: Purity, It's Heavenly To Be With You_

None of them doubted why Sesshomaru had silenced Shizuka, but he was willing to defy his lord – to a certain limit – in order to get his point across.

"Forgive me, my lord, but I must also say that it would have been greatly to our detriment if she was a miko associated with a temple, or with an assigned and sacred duty. There has been trouble with holy men of late, but since she is not of our time..."

But Shizuka paused, and looked hard at Sesshomaru, whose face had changed in the middle of his speech.

"My lord, is there something _else _you should tell us?"

The change in Sesshomaru's face became an odd grimace.

"...Perhaps."

They waited silently for him to choose his words.

"Kagome _is_ miko, and to my knowledge she is not associated with any temple in this era. However..."

Again, he paused, and then barely shrugged.

"I know not how it came to be in her possession, nor why she keeps it, but my mate is Priestess Guardian of the shikon no tama."

Something like a shudder went around the table; Musashi laughed out loud, and leaned his forehead against his hand.

"Anything else, my lord? Or shall we assume she is also the descendant of kami and perhaps a _tennyo_ besides?"

The table subsided into weak laughter, but Sesshomaru turned to speak to the two who had not spoken.

"Ryoichiro, Kenichiro – you have nothing to say?"

The pair, identical twins, looked at each other for a moment, then shrugged in unison. It was Ryoichiro who spoke, his voice casual.

"Not really. Shizuka said it all. And the shikon no tama – you don't want it. Wouldn't be wise for any of _us_ to have it; and you said she protects it. So? Let her."

Sesshomaru paused, startled by such an elegant and simple solution.

_Yes_.

"A good suggestion. She has done so thus far, my lord."

Sesshomaru's eyes darted to Shizuka, and then he nodded once, decisively.

"Very well. Do not concern yourselves with the jewel; do not _protect_ Kagome, but neither do I wish you to allow harm to come to her. Defend her as you would any Lady of mine – for she is your lady now. Go, now – except you, Shizuka. Stay, and come sit beside me."

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words...and...aha! A surprise – a _second_ chapter! Hehe. The prompt I used made me think of Musashi's silliness. Really, when you think of all the things Kagome is, it's kind of funny! More tomorrow, in which Sesshomaru Procures Company and Clothes for Kagome - as long as my internet does not melt! Pray for anything that takes the sun awaaaaay. (In the event of a supernova, I expect to thoroughly enjoy the moment in which I recognize that the sun HAD to have died before I could so thoroughly atomize. _It_ goes before _I_ do!)

Please Review!


	106. Chapter 106

Drabble Collection Alpha

CVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Larkspur: Open Heart, Beautiful Spirit_

When the others had gone, Shizuka rose slowly from his position facing Sesshomaru and took the seat directly to his right. For a long while, Sesshomaru sat in silence, sunk in his own thoughts, and then finally looked up.

"Shizuka, what are you thinking?"

The older Inu took a moment to gather his thoughts, and then spoke slowly and with great hesitance.

"My lord...I am not sure my thoughts will be very pleasing to you."

Sesshomaru raised one eyebrow.

"Not _pleasing_? When has that ever mattered to you before?"

There were several choice moments that stood out in Sesshomaru's thoughts to reinforce that statement. Shizuka smiled slowly in response, perhaps thinking of some of the same things, but still, he shook his head.

"My lord, it never has – but everything is different now. You have a _mate_, my lord. You have not returned to us since...the night you left. I do not think you have realized the influence the bond will have over your actions. _I _do not wish to be the first one to find out."

Sesshomaru scowled.

"She is human -"

"It doesn't matter, my lord. _You_ are youkai, and powerful; it was with your power that the magic of the bond wrote itself between you. Not hers; _yours_. And it will be a strong bond, because of that."

Sesshomaru let out a long breath and closed his eyes. This was true; of course it was.

"What will it do, Shizuka, the bond of a mate? Do you know something I do not?"

Shizuka sat back in his chair and listed things off on his fingers.

"It will alert you to her danger or her destruction; it will give you power over her, unless her will is great enough to fight that power, and it will give _her_ power over _you_, unless your will is great enough to fight that power."

He smiled faintly.

"My lord should not have to worry about that last; your mate is human, and -"

But Sesshomaru was frowning. This was something obvious that he had not considered, but which _recent_ events threw into a dangerous light.

"Shizuka, I will tell you something that I have not even told my mate. In the beginning, when I first warned against defiance, I thought as you do; I told her as much. She believed in the proof of my power over her and does still, but I...no longer believe myself. She is _miko_. When I fought with my brother she _did_ defy me, but she was not aware of it."

Shizuka's eyes grew wide; he seemed...pleased? Sesshomaru scowled again, but Shizuka waved away his discontent with an airy gesture.

"My lord, think on this! If she can defy _your_ power, your will, she should have no trouble with any of the others."

Thoughtfulness overtook the irritation on Sesshomaru's face.

"Perhaps. But remember, she does not know she has accomplished this."

"Then you must tell her, my lord. And quickly – before she finds out on her own."

"I cannot do that. Not yet; not now."

"May I...ask why, my lord?"

Sesshomaru stared at Shizuka in silence, and then stood and paced away toward a window on the western wall. The sun was setting; he stared at it.

"I was...harsh with her, cruel to her, when I first took her away from Inuyasha. I – regret that."

He took a deep breath, and Shizuka watched the set of his shoulders.

"I think...I think I am beginning to care for her; it is a terrible thing, old friend."

Sesshomaru turned to look at his companion. Red sunset-light flared in a corona around him; Shizuka came to his side and lay a hand on his shoulder.

"My lord – Sesshomaru – forgive me, but I can't think this is a bad thing. You have not cared enough in your life; you have perfected the arts of war and the arts political, but your heart has been sadly untended."

A dark movement of Sesshomaru's features was not enough to halt his words.

"Even if she is human, and was once your brother's, even if she is miko, and guardian of a sacred jewel - even if she comes to you out of time...perhaps she will be a great help to you in this way."

Sesshomaru found himself without words to reply. Shizuka's expression glittered with amusement at his expense, but he couldn't find it in himself to be insulted.

"I cannot say for certain, of course, as I have not met her, but...you have always been exceptional, Sesshomaru; the best of us. Perhaps it is for that reason that you find yourself bound to an equally exceptional mate."

* * *

><p>AN: 800 words! You tell him, Shizuka! Hearts are good! We NEED them! And so does S'homaru! :D One more coming up, and then its back to Kagome before Sesshomaru shows up to find her and probably cause smut :P I have not _written_ said smut, but I just get this feeling...:p

Please Review!


	107. Chapter 107

Drabble Collection Alpha

CVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Maidenhair: Discretion_

Sesshomaru turned back to the window, and stared down the mountainside at greenery alive with red and orange highlights and the sea far below, a dull roar of white water at the base of a rocky cliff.

"Well. Enough of this for now, Shizuka; this is not why I asked you to remain behind."

Sensing that he had pushed his boundaries far enough on this matter, Shizuka took a step backwards.

"As you say, my lord. Tell me how I may assist you."

"Do you know of any female among my people who might do well for my Kagome? She needs someone to teach her our ways and our traditions, to dress her and to accompany her – to serve her in all ways."

There were a few moments of silence, broken only by the thoughtful tapping of Shizuka's claws on the burnished steel of his vambraces.

"There is...great difficulty with this, my lord. Not many youkai will restrain themselves in the presence of a human; those who will are more likely to flee in terror than serve your mate well; she is miko, and therefore dangerous."

Shizuka caught Sesshomaru in a sharp gaze.

"It is for the first of those reasons that your father eventually sent his woman back to her own people. He could find no one to tend to her among our own kind, and the danger of bringing more humans to this place was a greater one than he was willing to risk."

Sesshomaru growled.

"That is...unacceptable. She is neither safe nor happy with Inuyasha, and I do not trust her with humans; not even those she calls _friends_."

Shizuka was surprised by Sesshomaru's vehemence.

"You are certain..."

"I am certain of nothing! I know only that humans hate and fear youkai, and that they hate and fear their own kind who do not despise us. I remember well the _cause _of my father's death – that woman's family – her foolish weakness – my brother's birth! They called her a _tainted _princess before they killed her; a defiled woman!"

Violence flowed free in him for a moment – _defiled, by the Inu no Taisho? Ignorant fools!_ - and then was locked away behind cold barriers.

"Now – answer my question, Shizuka!"

Unintimidated, Shizuka let out a slow breath.

"There is...one person I can think of, my lord, but she is...not technically a part of your entourage, though she does owe you allegiance."

Sesshomaru frowned.

"Who is this female?"

Shizuka smiled, surprising him completely.

"Her name is Yoko; she was adopted by my mother and has been part of our family ever since. She is a river dragon, not true-kin, but she has been like a sister to me since I was ten years old."

Sesshomaru appeared to be contemplating.

"Do you trust her?"

"With my life, my lord. With _your_ life, and the life of your mate – or I would not suggest it."

* * *

><p>AN : 500 words! Okay...so I got a little carried away :p And so there will be one more extra chapter before Kagome and Sesshomaru are reunited. But I like the part I got carried away with, because it gave me a different idea for later...oh, and here's something else that's been plaguing me: the probability that "that time of the month" is going to cause problems for Kagome, because...honestly, it has a pheremonal effect on _human_ males...sheesh. The problem is the amount of sheer VIOLENCE that this has precipitated in my head...Sesshomaru taking on _everyone_...aya. But then, you wonder – why wouldn't it have affected Inuyasha? Or, did it, and he just...never...let on? His only subtlety? HELP! (honestly the problem is clichés – there has to be something between slavering bloodlusting monster and no reaction at all, right?)

Please Review!


	108. Chapter 108

Drabble Collection Alpha

CVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Orchid: Chinese Symbol Of Many Children_

Sesshomaru stared for a moment, and then crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.

"Why _do_ you suggest it? What reason do you have to believe your _sister_ will be amenable to joining the service of a human?"

Shizuka smiled widely.

"Oh, she will be more than amenable; she will be very pleased. Once, several hundred years ago, Yoko saved a human child, a boy, from drowning in her river. His parents thought him lost, and left him, and Yoko raised him until he was nineteen years old, and a strange fever took him."

Sesshomaru shuddered, disturbed by thoughts of the frailty of mortals.

"I see."

Shizuka smiled softly, strangely, sadly.

"That was not the last time, my lord, only the first. Many times since, Yoko has found abandoned human children...in forests, in villages, in temples and palaces. And each time, she has raised the child, only to lose it to sickness, or war, or foolishness, or time. Each time, she has been heartbroken...and yet she does it again."

He looked up, and met Sesshomaru's eyes.

"Eight years ago, the most recent, a girl she called Miyuki, died in childbirth. The babe did not survive either, or perhaps she might have consoled herself. Forgive me, my lord, for thinking that with her for a companion to your mate, you and I may both be eased of our worries."

Sesshomaru's gaze became piercing, but he nodded slowly, and then returned to his chair, and sat.

"Go, Shizuka, and bring your hearth-sister to me. I will speak to her, and decide if she will meet Kagome; it is Kagome who must decide if she will be a fit companion."

Shizuka nodded, and turned away immediately, but paused in the doorway to speak over his shoulder.

"My lord? I believe, with the sun setting, the evening meal will be served soon. Shall I inform the kitchen to prepare food for two humans, instead of one?"

Sesshomaru's eyes widened for a moment, and then he nodded slowly.

"Yes – yes. I should have done so. But go quickly to your journey -"

"My lord, it is no journey. If you wish, I could bring Yoko to you before you dine. She has been visiting with me."

Sesshomaru contemplated this, and then shook his head.

"No. You will bring her to me while I dine, and you will dine with us; both of you. When you go to the kitchen, inform them of your preferences."

Shizuka bowed deeply.

"Yes, my lord. Thank you, my lord."

When he had gone and the door was closed behind him, Sesshomaru leaned back and closed his eyes with a sigh. That had gone...both better and worse than he had expected. Akihito had seemed the most shocked, but then that was not surprising. He was young, barely a hundred years older than Sesshomaru himself. Musashi's reaction had been normal, for Musashi; Shizuka had been as helpful as always and Yoshio simultaneously teasing and in control. The twins, however, bothered him by their silence; generally they could be counted upon for relevant counterpoints to any situation.

Then again, that _had_ been what they'd offered when he asked.

For a moment, Sesshomaru smirked.

_Perhaps they grow taciturn in their old age_.

Then he stood, and made his way out of the Council Chamber, out through the Main Hall and down several flights of stairs to a wooden building set well away from the trees. He noted that the roof was well doused with water, according to his instruction, and that the paint and gilding were fresh; good.

It was the Hall of Robes, and inside, packed carefully into long, well-tended boxes, was a wealth of exquisite garments. Quickly, he made his way inside and moved to the western section where the brightest robes were kept. His mate belonged in bright colors, colors as vivid as she was; he pulled out yellow gauze embroidered with arching patterns of blossoms, and red brocade on which a phoenix blossomed in flames of red and gold thread.

Then, his arms full of silk, he went out the door and up the stairs to the west wing.

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words...Okay! And now, some of what Kagome was doing (which was supposed to be this chapter :p) and then...hmm. Not exactly sure, but the return of Sesshomaru, and then dinner I think...and some introductions...and...yeah I shouldn't make any promises because I have _no idea_ :p Oh – and don't forget Inuyasha, lingering in limbo...and Sango and Miroku, waiting to hurt him. _Badly_. I already wrote part of that scene [mwaha]. Much thanks to all my reviewers; I've not had much time to reply, because I've been applying frantically to jobs everywhere...but I do appreciate reviews very much, so thank you!

Please Review!


	109. Chapter 109

Drabble Collection Alpha

CIX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Baby's Breath: Pure Heart, Happiness_

Kagome read several more pages in the little book, and then went back and read them again. There was a wealth of information there, and in terms she could easily relate to. She found herself understanding, not only Sesshomaru, but Inuyasha better as she read over certain passages, trying to commit ideas to memory. Some things spoke from her own experience:

"_Sometimes, I wonder why my love brought me here. Truly, his attentions when he visited secretly were the attentions of a lover; now, though he is still desirous, he is also more cautious of me." _

It brought to mind Kagome's own relationship with Sesshomaru, the growing change in him that had made itself known most strongly on their journey here. He had become...concerned, as if she might break at any moment; it was so different from how he had treated her at first!

She felt a burn of residual anger toward him for that _experience_. Seeing how he paid attention to her now made the memory more difficult to reconcile, but she had company in that feeling too. Izayoi-hime had written:

"_My life is suffering, and my world seems cursed; and I wonder - what is my reason to keep living? Then I remember that I have a love who I must be strong for, even when the memory of great wrongs presses my heart to anger and despair."_

By no definition could Kagome term her feelings for Sesshomaru _love_, but she did care for him a _little_...and she _was_ his mate. She acknowledged the strength of the commitment he had made by inviting her here, even though she could sense something of the manipulative desires of his heart.

She suspected that he had done his best to maneuver her. He _had_ used her to hurt Inuyasha – she _knew_ that – but she knew also that if that was all there was to it, he would have killed her already and been done with it.

Surely she was more trouble than Inuyasha's pain was worth?

She knew enough of the story of the Inu no Taisho's death to be certain of it.

But she winced, because her own feelings were...tangled. Concerning Inuyasha, who had attacked her; Inuyasha, who might be dead by now.

She surprised herself with the _faintness_ of her pang of loss and fear.

Sesshomaru had adjusted many preconceptions she had accepted without question by saving her life – and with his words, when they had landed. The words that had warmed her _little bit of caring_ into something she could acknowledge, and recognize.

"_Welcome home, mate."_

_Welcome home_.

It occurred to her suddenly that no one had said that to her in a long time; not her mother, who had gleaned the truth of Kagome's attachment to the past, and not her feudal friends, who persisted in thinking of their Time-Traveling companion as _outsider_, even when she made it clear that _this_ was her era, now.

_Welcome_ _home_.

She remembered then that that was not the first time he had said something like that. In the forest, after the terror had passed, had he not renewed his invitation in just that way? _Come home, mate_.

Unconsciously, Kagome began to pet the soft fur that was still wrapped around her, drawing comfort from the familiar youki, the strong pulse of Sesshomaru's power. Perhaps half an hour later, there was the noise of footsteps and the sliding of _shoji_, the swell of a familiar presence.

_Sesshomaru; his meeting must be through._

She was surprised to find that she was really..._happy_ that he had returned.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! I have no idea why I'm still typing this and not sleeping. Oh well! The lack of inspiration that was caused by me being laid off seems to be over, so I will hopefully be picking up my old update schedule - i.e., frequently :p So onward to another chapter!

Please Review!


	110. Chapter 110

Drabble Collection Alpha

CX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Mistletoe: Affection_

Outside the door to the room in which he could scent Kagome's presence, Sesshomaru stood very still, and made a decision more difficult than all the others.

Since he had returned to her, except for the protection he had given against Inuyasha's _idiocy_, he had not touched her with power. That had been because he was wary of her limits; he was not sure what it would take to once again wake her power against him, but he did not want to find out. If he could tell her on his own terms, before she discovered it for herself...that would, by far, be best.

But now...he intended to continue to _not_ influence her. Not like that. To refrain from doing so was the only way he could think of to earn her trust, though such a thing was not easy for him.

If she were anyone else, he would have considered the danger past already – Inuyasha had tried to take her life! - but he himself had greeted her more than once with promises of death, and she did not seem to hold it against him.

He had seen her forgiving nature and he knew that she had once harbored enough feelings for his brother that she had offered herself to him. Those feelings would make it still easier for her to forget, for her to -

As the thought came to him he was forced to repress a sudden urge that invited death for Inuyasha, and draw in a deep breath.

Since the moment he had felt her brush his power aside, he had felt his intentions changing, his desires shifting...

He had found himself hoping for a thing he had long ago given up on, and had recognized it for what it was only as he had admitted it to Shizuka.

_I care for her._

Tonight, _now_, he would go to his mate; without power, without cunning words. He would go to her, and see how she reacted.

He surprised himself with a pulse of desire, snarled at his own faint control. However pleasing she was, she was only human; just a woman...just his woman. All those thoughts faded as he slid aside the _shoji_ that led into the west wing's main room without announcing his presence.

"Sesshomaru!"

A blur of miko wrapped in white came towards him, stopped momentarily, tilted...and wrapped her arms securely around his middle and hugged him close under the impetus of her movements.

"You missed me, mate."

Defending her actions, she turned her face away. When she spoke, her voice was muffled by his chest.

"If you don't like it, push me away. Anyway, I never _did _give you an appropriate thank you for saving my life...before."

He eyed her for a moment.

"An appropriate thank you? Perhaps...later."

He smiled.

She almost fainted.

"_Now_, it is time for dinner. Your kit will be anxious to see you, I am sure – and I have invited one of my Council to bring his sister, as well."

Kagome looked up at him curiously.

"Really? Why?"

He shrugged, and attempted to look unconcerned.

"You will need help, and company. The kit and Rin will demand some of your time; most of it belongs to me...but you will still need someone to talk to and someone to teach you the ways of a demon court."

"_Thank you_."

There was no mirror to show him the expression of warmth that altered his features as Kagome wrapped her arms around him again and held him exquisitely, momentarily tight.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words, and that is it for tonight! Coming Up: Dressing For Dinner, A Meeting With Youkai, And The Introduction of Yoko, Who Will Indeed Be Helpful! Followed By: The Outfitting Of A Lady. Followed By Inuyasha: He Who Spies On The Past...again!

Please Review!


	111. Chapter 111

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXI

Prompt From GMDDN 7/16/11

_I've Got You Under My Skin_

Sesshomaru would have been absolutely horrified to know how soft, how _tender _he appeared in that moment, and his horror would have ended it.

Instead, he allowed himself to explore feelings of contentment that were unfamiliar, at best. Different things pleased him, and he cataloged them in his mind: the way she had run to him, how pleasant her gratitude and the _warmth_ of her arms around him was.

There was pleasure at the fact that she remained wrapped so tightly in his fur, and it was pleasure that she understood the trouble he had gone to, procuring her a companion, and there was pleasure in the scent of her hair, the curves of her beneath his hands, the sound of her heartbeat and the warmth of her breath through his clothes.

After a minute, she pulled away, and he found himself pleased even by the flush on her cheeks, the red stain that he knew would quickly filter down to stain her whole body.

He was full suddenly of a desire to _see_ that flush, to warm it with his hands. Carefully, he pulled away from her, and lay aside her robes.

Then he turned, and began to tug at her clothes.

"Come, Kagome. I must dress you for dinner, and then we go."

She pushed his hands aside, and then, her fingers steady this time, she undid the buttons on her shirt; the zipper of her skirt. Carefully, she undid the clasp of her bra – and then with a scowl, pulled her panties down her legs quickly, before he could get...ideas.

She watched his pupils dilate for a moment; he growled at her naked skin, and traced his claws across her belly...

And then she shivered, and he pulled back and reached for the first robe.

* * *

><p>AN: Thank r0o and her GMDDN prompt for this one, folks, I was stuck! Woo! Go r0o!

Please Review!


	112. Chapter 112

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Bachelor Button: Delicacy, Anticipation_

Sesshomaru's _self-control_ was built on wariness; he was unsure of pressing himself on Kagome so soon after bringing her here – without the push of lustful powers to incite her, entice her - but he was reassured by the flicker of disappointment that crossed her face when he pulled his hands away.

Gently, teasing himself as much as her, he rolled one of her nipples between his finger and his thumb...and then the other, pleasing himself with her intake of breath. It was easy to sneak touches and sly caresses between the layers of her clothes; by the time she was _properly dressed_, there was a look in her eyes that said she wanted nothing more than for him to undo all his work.

She saw a smile in the corners of his eyes, and flushed; then he reached out a hand for her and took her fingers in his grasp. A chime rang, faint and musical, and he turned and tugged her gently towards the door.

"The bell for the evening meal."

Kagome took a few steps, carefully, found her movements not as restricted as she had expected, and then looked up as Sesshomaru reached under her chin with one finger.

"Mate, you have only this one opportunity to make a first impression. You _are_ my mate, and so you should be afforded respect equal to what is given me...but you are also human, even if you are miko and powerful. Shizuka, my councilor, is not malicious in his intentions toward you; but make no mistake, his eyes will be searching for weakness."

His gaze was intent; Kagome felt her heartbeat pounding hard in her chest.

"You must make your own status, Kagome. Your own place. Do you understand?"

She was _sure_ she didn't.

She nodded anyway.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! Ahh...sorry for the long break, but I am doomed; got laid off this week, which puts my priorities in a different order and made all inspiration flee in terror for a while...I shout ineffectively in protest at the entirety of the universe. May my loudness give thunderous dreams to the gods! Anyway, my muse kicked me in the head, today, so, ta-da!

Please Review!


	113. Chapter 113

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

Honeysuckle: Happiness, Sweetness

Dressed in four layers of robes – two yellow, two red; two embroidered, two plain – Kagome found walking to be a new and strange exercise.

The clothes did not seem exactly _right_ to her; the silk was far too fine, the gauze wispy and transparent, the embroidery made with stitches impossibly small. The cut of her robes was different than she would have expected of clothing in this era, the sleeves long and elegant like clothes of an even earlier time...but then, these were _youkai_ robes, not human.

If Sesshomaru knew what she was thinking he did not let on, but she found his hand at her elbow when they came outside, and then she was promptly lifted up into his arms.

"Sesshomaru - hey! Put me down! What are you doing?"

His expression softened faintly under her protests; he looked at her studiously for a moment, and she detected that same concern again.

"I have hurt you?"

She blinked, and then shook her head, continued squirming.

"No. But I can walk, you know -"

He shook his head.

"Not now, mate. We are in the west wing of the Lower House; we dine tonight in the Main Hall. Tell me, how long would it take you to climb three thousand stairs?"

"Three...thousand..."

Her eyes tracked the side of the mountain, the long white stair that led up...and up...

"Never mind. Just – never mind."

She sighed heavily, and seemed to resign herself to being carried – but then there was wind around them, sudden and great, and she saw the ground fade away beneath them and then just as quickly it returned. She swayed in his arms, breathless, and then he leapt again -

They were suddenly very much closer to the top of the island. The palace she had seen from the air was directly in front of them, perhaps ten steps away. Carefully, he set her down on the ground, and allowed her to rearrange her robes and hair to her satisfaction.

"You are ready, Kagome?"

He heard the beating of her heart increase, sensed nervousness, scented fear.

"I – yes. No, but...yes."

He reached out one hand and lifted her chin, stilled her trembling lips with a single finger.

"Kagome. You are beautiful. You are _powerful_. Your beauty will leave them speechless and your strength will bring them to their knees. Remember that you are _my_ woman, if anyone dares to say _woman_ with disrespect. Promise me - you _will_ remember."

Her eyes glowed with warmth. He had never given her such acceptance; never! No one had; not in...time out of mind – and for some reason, coming from him...

"Yes. _Yes_."

She took one step back and stood on his left side, bowed slightly.

"Do we go, Sesshomaru-sama?"

He reached out and traced the nape of her neck, the line of her throat, with one finger, and smiled at her pleasing flush.

"Yes. We go."

* * *

><p>AN: Mwaha! 500 words to prove...I am...not dead! The dearth of creative impulses which was caused by having no job is gone, because...well...I actually don't know. But, it's gone! So...chapters! Woo! More...relatively soon. I have to edit the next bit :p

Please Review (and forgive for long time no updates)!


	114. Chapter 114

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Camellia: Steadfastness_

As Kagome walked by Sesshomaru's side through many _shoji_, each of which was opened for them by attentive servants, she found herself the target for many stares. She endured them quietly; she remembered what he had said.

_Powerful. Beautiful_.

He had _chosen_ her. She would not make him regret it.

She _wanted_ this. It had been a long time since she had felt she had any worth, any value. With Inuyasha, she was haunted by nightmares of _second-best..._haunted by her own ghost.

She wanted – _needed_ – this_. _To _belong_ here.

More than she had ever wanted anything in her life.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! Just a teensy one, and onwards!

Please Review!


	115. Chapter 115

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Dahlia: Good Taste_

In the Main Hall, Kagome was again overwhelmed by beauty, just as she had been in the Lower House – or perhaps more so. Everything glittered, everything shined; the light of the sun came through opened shutters along the western wall, and Kagome stood still, trying to calm her heartbeat.

The two youkai sitting at the table stood immediately in Sesshomaru's presence, and he pulled her forward, held her fingers lightly but spoke in hard tones.

"This is Kagome, who I have brought to be my mate. She is over you as the stars are over this world. Kagome, these are one of my Council, Shizuka, and his hearth-sister, Yoko."

The two stood at the sound of their names and bowed in Kagome's direction. Kagome saw an open smile on Yoko's face and sternness in Shizuka – but sternness was far better than anything she had been expecting, and she felt herself relax, reminding herself of what Sesshomaru had said.

**"****_Shizuka is not malicious in his intentions, but his eyes will be searching for weakness..."_**

He was staring at her, true, but the weight of his gaze was curiosity, only, and not disgust; she could feel the difference. The female, Yoko, was a surprise altogether, but such apparent friendliness – if it was real - would be a good thing to have in a companion...especially in this place.

Sesshomaru allowed a moment or two for examinations on both sides, and then pulled Kagome forward with him to the head of the table and sat her beside him. Immediately, coming forward from the end of the table where he had been whispering to Rin, Shippou leapt across the open space and wrapped his arms around Kagome's waist.

"Kagome! Have you seen – did you explore? I was walking with Rin – she's really nice, Kagome – and we saw the biggest fish in a pond, and a Pavilion with red windows, and -"

"Slow down, Shippou! Where are your manners?"

He settled after that, and Sesshomaru answered the questioning glance of Shizuka.

"The Kitsune belongs to my mate; he is her chosen son."

Yoko bowed her head in acknowledgment. Shizuka's eyes widened, but he remained silent, staring across the table.

He had wondered what kind of miko would mate a demon from the moment Sesshomaru had mentioned it. Apparently, it was the same kind that adopted Kitsune kits...but what did that mean?

* * *

><p>AN: Ah...behold! 400 words...and...now I must write the middle of the next chapter!

Please Review!


	116. Chapter 116

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXVI

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Life_

Shizuka watched the miko, this _Kagome_, carefully, all through the meal. She said nothing when the youkai at the table, even her own Kitsune, used claws and sharp teeth to devour raw meat; her own manners were delicate and precise and he was amused to see her reach across with her napkin and wipe beast-blood from Shippou's face.

She copied youkai manners, stayed alert to her youkai son, drank youkai wine, and showed only a moment of surprise when she tasted its strength and sweetness. She drank only a single glass, and then stuck to tea; Shizuka shook himself to stop his staring, and retreated into his thoughts.

They were simple, and mostly pleasing; this woman, fragile-seeming though she was, had none of the real frailty that had belonged to the woman on whom the Inu no Taisho had sired his son. This Kagome hid a great and growing power; this close to her, he could feel the holy aura tingling on his skin, a perpetual warning...not uncomfortable, not pressing, but certainly there. What was more, this immensity of presence seemed completely unconscious. She simply _was_, this miko; he wondered for a moment what it would be like to meet her in battle, and shuddered.

_Terrifying._

Shizuka turned then and glanced along the table's length at Sesshomaru, grasping in a moment's glance that some great change was being worked on his lord. There was _warmth _in his face; when the miko leaned against him, or touched him, it seemed to awaken the promise of a smile.

Through slitted eyes, with careful concentration, Shizuka turned his attention to the power in the room. He saw the flush of his own aura, and that of his sister, both of them crushed into dimness by the gold flux of Sesshomaru's youki and the great fuchsia flowering of his new mate's strength.

His eyes went wide then, and the vision faded. Was it _possible_?

Over their heads beat two waves, two oceans of power, neither giving at all, both curling around each other, coming together like a _taijitu_, in perfect balance.

He wondered if anyone had noticed but him; was that the reason for the little smile on Yoko's face? No – she spoke with the miko...

Shizuka realized then that in his distraction he had not even heard the conversations going on around him – between Kagome and Yoko, Rin and Sesshomaru. He hoped that no one had spoken to him, avoided Sesshomaru's eyes, and looked down the table at the only person not speaking; Shippou.

_A Kitsune, and not yet through his first decade, never mind his first century. A Kitsune...and he belongs to that miko. The miko mate of Sesshomaru...now, those are stories would interest me. I wonder..._

Plate and cup in hand, Shizuka stood and made his way a few places down, so that he could more easily speak with the kit.

"Kit, what is your name?"

Shippou looked up startled, and then glanced around for guidance, but Rin had gone to stand by Sesshomaru's side and Kagome was deep in conversation with the one that wanted to serve her.

_Nothing for it!_

"I'm Shippou, um -"

"You may call me Shizuka, Shippou. You are young yet for formalities."

"Al-alright. Was there – d'ya want something, then?"

Shizuka only smiled.

"I wondered if you might be interested in telling me a tale, young Shippou. I am interested to know how you come to be associated with my Lady."

Shippou considered carefully for a moment, and Shizuka felt his eyes fall heavily upon him. Shippou scowled, tapping his little claws on his elbow – and then he nodded once, sharply.

"Alright. I'll tell you. I know what you're trying to _do_ – but I'll tell you."

And then Shippou grinned.

"And even better, I won't tell Kagome on you."

Shizuka went pale, and found himself suddenly unable to swallow in a dry throat.

"That is – kind of you, Shippou."

The kit shrugged modestly.

"Yeah, well, the only reason I don't care is 'cause I know...and 'cause I don't think it matters if you know how I found Kagome. Umm...let's see..."

* * *

><p>AN: There we go, a good long one! I found Priestess Skye's Challenge with many prompts and many good tokens; the word counts are a little higher than I've been using so far in Alpha, but we'll see what happens. And feel free to let me know whether you prefer the shorter or longer chapters; I doubt the difference will have much effect on posting time. Onward, to...the other end of the table! And after that, back to Inuyasha I think :D

Please Review!


	117. Chapter 117

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Flax: Domestic Symbol, Come Together_

"It was seven seasons ago, and spring, and I was by myself because my father..."

Shippou began his story, unaware that there were more listeners than just Shizuka. Sesshomaru had finished speaking with Rin – he had wanted to know how, exactly, she had gotten to the Garnet Pavilion – and was himself interested to know how Shippou had joined Kagome's company.

He did not mind the presence of the Kitsune. So easily, she adapted to youkai custom! Sesshomaru had watched Shizuka watching Kagome – and he was sure that the first impression she had made on him was...admirable.

* * *

><p>AN: Oh, I lied, I lied, this tiny chapter intrudes! It just...appeared! More perhaps later; ff net is now officially caught up to Dokuga, so you guys will be getting new chapters "fresh off the press" as it were. Enjoy! :p

Please Review!


	118. Chapter 118

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Gloxinia: Love At First Sight_

For Yoko, her new _assignment_ was love at first sight. She was more used to humans than any of the youkai in the room – even Shippou, just because of the sheer amount of time she had lived. She was well aware of Kagome's youth, judging her barely twenty, or perhaps not quite yet out of her teens. She had lost Miyuki at just this age, the most recent of many tragedies that had scarred her heart...most recent of many lost children, pale and wan and leaving not even a keepsake behind.

In Kagome, she saw strength; in Kagome, she saw a sparkling intelligence and a more sparkling power, a sweetness to her aura that had washed the whole room as she entered. Her eyes took in the gem that hung suspended from a thin silver chain around Kagome's neck; she listened to the pounding of Kagome's heartbeat as it sped up in nervousness and slowed; she saw that Kagome's happiness was genuine, that her nervousness came from a great and near-impossible desire to be accepted -

And so Yoko accepted her at once, and took her to her heart, another lost child in need of tending and mending. True, Kagome was nominally her Lady – mated to Sesshomaru, and wasn't _he_ a one in need of just as much fixing as a lost babe!

She kept her thoughts quiet, knowing what would happen if he perceived them. Terrified that he might show weakness, terrified that others could _know_ in him weakness, he would strike first and question later. Unpleasant, that could be...

But ah, his choice of mate!

She liked this Kagome at once; she was both beautiful and powerful, already almost at ease – yet already, there were two things that Yoko could see that _immediately_ needed to be put right.

* * *

><p>AN: Oooh, that was a long break, and completely unintentional! 300 words! This chapter has been done for a while – my apologies, but between the start of the new semester and a change in internet service and that _damned_ hurricane...well. At any rate...onward! :D

Please Review!


	119. Chapter 119

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXIX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Pledge_

"My Lady -"

"Oh please – you must call me Kagome. You are Yoko?"

"Yes, My – Kagome. In private, I may and surely must do as you ask, but I must warn you that such familiarity in public is not...seemly."

Kagome only smiled.

"Thank you, Yoko. I won't mind then, or if Sesshomaru complains. But...really, it sounds funny, people calling me _lady_. I'm new to... _all_ _this_."

"You do not come from court?"

Kagome shook her head, laughing.

"No, no, not even close! In _this_ time I'm a miko, and I've spent the last few years trudging all over Nihon because of _this_ thing."

She tapped the jewel hanging at her throat lightly.

"In my own time I'm just a schoolgirl, the daughter of a family that owns a shrine with an _extremely_ odd well on its property. Really that's the most special thing about me."

Again, the laughter; Yoko leaned forward, drawn by it. Such sounds were not common in a place like this; youkai were not known for their humor. But it was welcome to her, as very few things would have been welcome. She was more pleased to know of Kagome's kind heart and joyful nature than she had been to notice her tremendous power.

"Kagome – my Lady – I am pleased to take your service, if you will have me."

Kagome nodded and smiled, and reached across the table to take Yoko's hands.

"Yes – of course! I'm so glad there's someone like you here."

Yoko nodded herself and then for the first time appeared faintly nervous.

"If I am now in your service then I must beg pardon to say...to say that my Lady, you have been hurt! Do you need care?"

Kagome appeared puzzled for a moment, and then touched her cheek, lay her palm over the side of her face, comprehension dawning.

"This? Oh – no, but thank you. It's just a bruise."

She was surprised when Yoko did not just drop the matter; her face changed subtly and Kagome watched her eyes flash toward Sesshomaru.

"My lady, please forgive – but it is not a question of _just_. Someone has struck your face! Unless my Lord -"

Sesshomaru proved then that he had noted their conversation.

"There is _nothing_ that would incite me to visit violence on my mate, Yoko! Be careful with your words."

He saw surprise flicker on Kagome's face as he spoke, and then become a tentative smile.

"But...then...my Lady! Who has dared -"

Kagome sighed, shrugged.

"It was Inuyasha – Inuyasha, before Sesshomaru came back for me. I don't think...I don't think you know him."

From his place further down the table, Shizuka stood, his face tight and angry.

"My lord's half-brother? _I_ know of him. If you will excuse me, Lady; my lord -"

"Shizuka. Where are you going?"

The dark-haired Inu stopped and turned to face Sesshomaru with an expression on his face that _willed_ him to understood the deeper motive in his sister's words.

"This insult must be addressed, my Lord! To strike your mate – the fool deserves death!"

And Sesshomaru recognized then the opportunity he had been given to deliver a warning – a warning, for all those ears listening in on these moments, all those ears that would deliver reports to many others. He would give them something to _tell_, oh yes...

"Sit down."

Shizuka bridled at the command, but Sesshomaru spoke again, more sharply.

"Sit _down_, Shizuka! The matter has been dealt with; if Inuyasha still lives, it is luck that sustains him, for it certainly was not my intention. Still, regardless – he is not worth interrupting a good meal."

Shizuka bowed swiftly before returning to his seat.

"My apologies, my Lord."

And Sesshomaru shook his head, marveling at the preparedness of these two.

"I tell you now, Shizuka – anyone who seeks to harm her, _I_ will punish them – and I will make sure that as much as I enjoy it...they do not."

Sesshomaru's words were harsher than was strictly necessary, but he wanted to impress the thought behind them; he wanted to make his people _understand_. There was a promise of violence towards anyone who might think of reaching out towards his mate in that statement.

He scowled as he stared at the vivid bruise forming on Kagome's cheek; Inuyasha's work, and he had forgotten that it would not heal with the passing of a few moments – or he would have thought of this himself. He almost shuddered, thinking of the violence that would be directed at her if there was suspicion he did not want her...did not protect her.

_Human, she is human, I must remember...I **must **remember..._

She was so different from any other human in his experience that it was easy to think of her as something _other_, something...more than mortal – and now that he knew about her origins, now that he had examined her improbable power...

But he shook himself, the barest twitch of his muscles, and returned to his attention to the table.

The moment had passed; Rin and Shippou were involved in debate on the merits of _stickiness_ versus _squishiness_ in desserts. How...strange. Kagome had returned to her conversation with Yoko, which had apparently turned to fads in youkai fashion; Shizuka was watching all this with an expression that was both satisfied and amused.

"You are pleased, Shizuka?"

And Shizuka nodded slowly, responding to all the layers of that question at once.

"Most pleased, my Lord; and yet, still not as pleased as you, I think."

Sesshomaru shook his head.

"You will go too far one day, Shizuka."

Sesshomaru heard Kagome laughing then, and turned to see what was so amusing – but he had obviously just missed the joke, and managed a glare that only served to convince him, by the redoubling of Kagome's laughter, that the _joke_ was on _him_.

"Mate, you are laughing at me."

"No – I'm not – I'm not laughing at -"

But words failed her completely at that point, and he glowered even more spectacularly than before.

It was Shizuka who finally shook his head and pointed out the not-so-obvious.

"My lord, a message -"

And Sesshomaru turned finally to see a very small messenger, purple with fear and shivering so violently his knees were _actually_ knocking together. In an attempt to keep quiet and keep his teeth from chattering, the sad thing was making all sorts of odd contortions with his face, and Sesshomaru took a moment to look back and forth between the messenger and his mate.

"I see. Forgive me, Kagome. And you – give me your message and go."

With a final shiver, a note was passed into Sesshomaru's grasp. The messenger fled before Sesshomaru could even note the seal of the sender...and once he did, he felt the pleasant mood of the evening flee from him.

It was his _own_ seal. And there was only one other being living with the right – the _daring_ – to use it.

_Mother_!

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><p>AN: Whew! This is, by far, the LONGEST Alpha chapter yet! But, I met the word limit; 1200 words, yay! Now, truly, give me some feedback on what you think. Longer chapters, or shorter...or in the middle? I think my favorite is probably the 400-700 range, but I do take suggestions into account, always, since...well, I write for you guys! Now, I think this is a good [and evil] place to leave our intrepid miko and her insanely sexy demon lord, and venture back to the Abyss – where Inuyasha has been waiting...

Please Review!


	120. Chapter 120

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Regrets_

Inuyasha had waited in silence, in stillness, in darkness; he had no choice, no control of this place or in it. When a figure appeared in his vision, approaching slowly, familiar but not immediately identifiable, he wondered who it was that had come to continue his _instruction_. Who else did he know that had died; who else cared about a _worthless hanyou_?

The scent he encountered even as he had the thought brought him knowledge and fury as one thing.

"Naraku!"

He leapt immediately at his old enemy, only to fly right through him. Naraku laughed, and Inuyasha crouched, growling, fangs bared, at that hated and familiar sound.

"Now, now, Inuyasha. That is a rude way to greet someone who has come to help you – and also pointless, since we are _between_ and therefore invulnerable."

Inuyasha's growl did not diminish.

"You bastard! You better watch it, or I _will_ figure out a way to kill you _here_, too. Hell is too good for scum like you!"

He was gratified to see Naraku's smile falter.

"You may feel that way; certainly I think nothing better of _you_. Perhaps your father agrees with me; he is, after all, the one who occasioned my presence _here_."

Inuyasha's only answer was a snarl; with his enemy, _this _enemy in front of him, he felt the absence of Tetsusaiga at his side like an itch, a heavy ache.

Naraku's presence, his powerlessness, the thought of his father – his _father_ – sending _this bastard_ to _help_ him - ! Many things swarmed together in his awareness, and for a moment, Inuyasha felt a pulse of fury like only one other he had ever known, and quailed from the feeling. Again, that terrible memory flashed before his eyes – _Kagome on the ground, the sword in his hands – the sword! - _again, as it had for his mother, images played out before him in the void.

But this time, there was no comfort, no words encouraging repentance; only laughter, cruel and terrible laughter – and a glimmer more terrible still in the red and glowing eyes behind it.

"Ahh, love...how shallow the feeling, how slow it is to tame the raging beast! If only you had found this enlightenment before, Inuyasha, what good _friends_ we would have been..."

Bile crawled up Inuyasha's throat, made his mouth sour. He stared at the image of Kagome, her wide-open eyes, a frozen moment of horror, of betrayal, of such fear, such _fear_ -

"I never wanted you to be afraid of me, Kagome. Not _you_."

Resolve strengthened within him. He would see this through; he had no choice. If he stayed here forever; if he died – what would happen then, to his chance for forgiveness?

He did not truly believe he would win it, but if he couldn't even _try_ -

That would be worse than anything in Hell.

"All right, Naraku! What are you here to show me?"

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><p>AN: 500 words! Mwaha...someone...I honestly can't remember who...was it r0o? Suggested Naraku as someone to continue Inuyasha's...education. _All sorts of evil _sprouted from the thought of that...so a good choice, ne?

Please Review!


	121. Chapter 121

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXI

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Heartless_

Naraku's voice grew thick with pleasure at the thought of Inuyasha's potential pain.

"Have you not guessed, Inuyasha? I am here to show you the things you have always suspected and have never been free of; I am your personal nightmare, the Hell you lived. Did you think I would be anything different _here_?"

For the second time there was low and terrible laughter, and Inuyasha constrained himself from leaping forward with a jerk of will that set all his muscles trembling.

"You saw Sesshomaru, the Inu Daiyoukai, inheritor of power - your brother, in his youth. You saw his training, the molding that would have made him a most terrible scion of the Inu no Taisho; you saw the events that changed it all. Now, watch, Inuyasha!"

Around them the darkness cracked, splintered, shattered, and then resolved into the now-familiar _shiro_, with one significant difference from the last time Inuyasha had seen it.

Guards and banners were scattered everywhere, as they had been on the day of his brother's birth. Youkai in armor lounged in ranks or circles, talking quietly amongst themselves – but all their armor was battered, and many were licking fresh wounds.

Naraku prowled among them, smiling viciously at those who were near death.

"It has been a little more than six years; your brother has grown in power, in presence...but not in _control_. He is deadly to be near, and there are few who dare face him – now, for the first time in his memory, he will meet the one who sired him."

Following reluctantly behind Naraku, Inuyasha came suddenly into an unexpected courtyard, and stumbled in the presence of his father. He was surprised to see his brother doing exactly the same thing on the other side of the courtyard.

"My son; so, you have come to greet your father!"

For a single heart-stopping moment Inuyasha felt a warmth blossoming in his chest; a warmth that was instantly crushed when the Inu no Taisho turned to stare down at Sesshomaru.

_A memory, it's only a memory; it's not real, he can't see me, he doesn't know...I'm here. I'm here, father._

Many long buried feelings welled up at that thought, but the presence of Naraku loomed over Inuyasha's shoulder, his red eyes fat with glee, and Inuyasha clamped down on his emotions, suppressed grief and anger and unfulfilled wishes...unfulfilled dreams.

"Pay attention, Inuyasha; are you watching closely? You will enjoy this, I am sure."

Inuyasha growled, but managed to grind out a question.

"What? What is going on?"

Naraku strolled around from behind him, stood smirking and pointed at the image-figure of Sesshomaru's youthful self.

"Today, your father has returned after many years to his own fortress; he will not yet stay here, but he has stopped to rest his warriors and meet the son he left behind. Foolish sentimentality; he thinks your brother will be pleased to see him, but nothing could be further from the truth."

Inuyasha frowned, and took a few steps forward, stared at the expression on Sesshomaru's face: cold, a complete mask, an _emptiness_...

And it did not change, even when their father spoke again.

"Well, my son? Have you nothing to say?"

Inuyasha watched Sesshomaru's face, saw shifting there..but the expression did not complete itself.

"Is there something I should say, father? I do not know you."

If Sesshomaru was surprised to see something like sadness on his father's face, he did not show it. The Inu no Taisho reached out one hand to grasp the shoulder of his eldest son, and stared down at him.

"I hear many things about you, Sesshomaru; your mother's displeasure, your great and terrible strength, the schedule of training you keep for yourself. You conduct yourself well in my absence; it was never my intention to be gone for so long, and I had hoped your mother..."

But he shrugged, and stepped back from his son. Inuyasha turned a little and studied his father, the concern so easily visible, and then looked again to the stillness of Sesshomaru's face.

"But I am told you no longer speak of her, or permit her presence."

There was wariness now in Sesshomaru's gaze.

"This is true. After what she caused – no. She is not welcome near me."

Inuyasha heard the words _not welcome_, and heard death. It was obvious that the Inu no Taisho, too, heard death, and in that moment he seemed to reevaluate his son.

"Well, Sesshomaru. I returned here expecting a child; I see that is not what I have found. You will come with me, my son. You will fight beside me, and I will continue your training myself. I will show you -"

"No. _No_."

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><p>AN: 800 words, yay...and oh my! No, Sesshomaru says! Why would he say no? Well...onward, of course! :D Oh – and here's a thought for those wondering why _Naraku _of all people: Inuyasha hates Sesshomaru; he does, he really does. But he hates Naraku _more _– more than his brother, more than anyone - and that means that Naraku is perhaps the only person in the world to whom Inuyasha might defend his brother...which is what daddy wanted all along :p

Please Review!


	122. Chapter 122

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Search_

The eyes of the Inu no Taisho went wide with surprise, and he stood momentarily straighter, peering down at his son. His irritation gave a flare of power to his youki; disenchanted or not, Sesshomaru could not deny his father's strength, watched the

"_No_? You say no to your father, Sesshomaru?"

Sesshomaru's eyes grew heated with youki, but his expression remained preternaturally calm.

"My father? Perhaps – but if not for the resemblance between us, how would I know you from any other Inu?"

Something shifted between them as Sesshomaru spoke, something in the balance of power. His father had been surprised and immediately angry with his son's denial of his instruction; now he looked merely...thoughtful. Sesshomaru took a single step forward.

"What gives you such arrogance, my son? Do you have a will to self-destruction?"

"You think me arrogant? No – but for six years I have made my own path; I will not abandon it now. And as to my life, or my death – is it not late to be speaking words of concern, _father_?"

Slowly, holding at bay an obvious and enormous rage, Sesshomaru looked down at his claws, studied them with careful nonchalance. His father let out a great sigh, and seemed to shrink, losing his legendary aura.

"I have waited too long, Sesshomaru? That is what you are telling me? Perhaps you are right; you have grown up far too quickly. But I am proud of you, my son. You begin early the work of making a reputation for yourself, a reputation of strength."

"You make it sound as if I had a choice."

Only the tonelessness of the words saved Sesshomaru's response from sounding scornful.

In the moment of silence that followed as each of them, father and son, studied the other, Naraku spoke, his breath cold and fetid on Inuyasha's cheek.

"Do you see, Inuyasha? There - what you always wanted, what you always desired; to be close to your father, showered in his attention, his...pride. Your brother is being offered all those things, but _he_ wants none of them. He throws them away, tosses them aside like they are nothing."

Naraku smiled viciously.

"Do you feel cheated, Inuyasha?"

He received a growl in response; Inuyasha was intent on Sesshomaru, on his father – his father, who he had never known, who he was now learning for the first time. He couldn't see why his brother was so angry at his father's absence – almost twenty years, yes, the twenty years of his youth...but now he was there. He was _there_, so...

Inuyasha's own experience, a perceived abandonment, an endless regret for something that was not even _his_ to wish to do differently...he had no memory of his father at all! Didn't Sesshomaru know what he was doing, what he was giving up by forcing his father away?

A flicker of the understanding that had been intended for him awoke in Inuyasha then.

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! Sesshomaru meets Inupapa! Inuyasha meets the truth! Let's see how they all get along, hmm? [premonitions of great evil]. Might be a few hours before the next one – it's almost done, but I'm trying to figure out how to post Skye's tokens in my profile. I epically fail at the using of such things...oh well!

Please Review!


	123. Chapter 123

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXIII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Power_

Inuyasha looked at his brother's anger and saw hurt behind it; the same hurt he himself bore. For, after all, what would it mean to have a father, if that father was never there?

If something else was always more important?

If you were an afterthought -

If you were...not even that?

Against that pain, how could pride measure? How could promises? How could another hundred, another _thousand_ years, make up for that first agony?

And Inuyasha felt a sudden flicker of guilt that was utterly disturbing to him, because it came on the heels of this..._compassion_, this moment of empathy with his brother.

It occurred to him that his own thoughts contained the reason for Sesshomaru's envenomed hatred of his life. After all...he had been told, he _knew_, that the Inu no Taisho had died in the defense of his mother...of him. _He_ had been one of those things more important; an incitement to resentment.

His father had died for his sake; he had not lived for his eldest son.

The truth hit Inuyasha with all the force and subtlety of a blow to the head, and he sucked in a deep breath. He ignored the presence of Naraku over his shoulder, and all his attention focused on his father now; there was interest in his features, and challenge.

"I will bargain with you, Sesshomaru, as I would with a wary ally. I will fight you; if you win blood, I will leave your future at your own discretion."

Inuyasha's eyebrows shot upwards in surprise. A fight? _That_ was how his father chose to win the affection of his son?

But having never seen him before these moments, having never looked into his eyes except for a solitary instance on the night of his birth, the Inu no Taisho still _knew_ Sesshomaru; knew him well. Perhaps it was the blood they shared; perhaps it was merely a part of being youkai.

All Inuyasha saw was that for the first time, there was a smile on his brother's face.

It was not an expression of happiness, it was not a sharing; it _stole_, and in the face of it their father looked momentarily uncertain...and then his features hardened, and he struck out in violence towards his son.

His claws missed their blow, as Sesshomaru dodged with quiet and unearthly grace, and Inuyasha saw surprise on his father's face. The second blow, a closed fist, connected, but Inuyasha saw the glare of fury in his brother's eye and knew that it had hit because Sesshomaru had _allowed_ it to.

He went flying, smashed his way through the side of a small gallery and left a gaping hole in the wall beyond it. Unmoved, the Inu no Taisho stood still, and watched, and waited.

"Well, Sesshomaru? Stand! Attack me. Show me the power I can feel; give your anger voice!"

White with stone-dust, Sesshomaru stood, and shook rubble from his robes, and stepped toward his father. His eyes narrowed; Inuyasha read a darkness of intentions and memory there, and winced. Fresh in _his_ memory were the wounds Sesshomaru had inflicted on his own mother; he had not held back then, and years had passed since...how much had his strength grown? How deadly was his nature now, when it had been lethal before he was thirteen years old?

A green glow of _dokkasou_ woke at the tips of Sesshomaru's claws; with movements blindingly swift, he darted towards his father and forced him to block; he had gone for the throat, for a death-blow and not a mere wound.

Blood streamed down his father's arm, stained his sleeve crimson and dripped slowly to the ground. The Inu no Taisho chuckled, pleased and surprised, and then took two steps back from his son.

"You have won your reprieve, Sesshomaru. What will you do with it?"

Sesshomaru appeared to be contemplating, unsure of whether or not to share his secrets with his father, his father...who he did not know.

"I will grow stronger; I will learn. I will match great power with great control, and when the time comes – when the time comes..."

But he did not finish his sentence.

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words...mwaha! I gave up on tokens, and so instead, more chapter, dedicated to r0o, who always reviews, how glorious! Next up, we will see what Sesshomaru has been doing in his attempt to control his power and make his own path...dangerously. Also, Naraku Makes Some Noise...which is not heard in the manner he wanted by our half-departed hanyou. :D

Please Review!


	124. Chapter 124

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXIV

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Toxic_

With a suddenness that made Inuyasha nauseas, the world twisted. The figures of his father and Sesshomaru wavered, streaked across his sight, and dissipated. Without warning, there was a shift of colors and light that blurred all objects into indistinct outlines and then brought them back, clear and sharp.

Inuyasha breathed deeply, and did his best to ignore the laughter of Naraku behind him. It was not a very good effort; it took only thirty seconds for him to turn with a growl and attempt to drive his claws into his enemy. He encountered less resistance than if he had plunged his hands into mist.

"Bastard! Why can't I – kill you!"

With a grunt of effort and a swift lunge, Inuyasha moved forward again, but Naraku only smiled, amused by Inuyasha's persistence and ineffectiveness.

"You cannot do fleshly damage to things that have no flesh, idiot hanyou."

His lip curled; absently, he rubbed the tips of his fingers together and looked up at Inuyasha with an expression of utter loathing.

"You, with that miko – you are responsible for my...current _state_. If it had happened to anyone else, I would be _happy _to see your attempts at continued vengeance frustrated; blame only yourself, Inuyasha!"

For a moment one of Naraku's hands curled into a fist – but then he turned away, injecting amusement into his voice again, even in the face of Inuyasha's sneer.

"We are moving on, Inuyasha. We are going forward. You have seen your brother offered all your dreams; now, you will see finally that he possesses a power so great that your strength will always be a mere shadow in comparison. You are _weak_, Inuyasha."

For a moment, anger rushed like poison in Inuyasha's veins, dark and compelling. For a moment was difficult to decide what he hated more – the likely truth of that statement, or the one speaking -

But it was just a moment.

"Go to Hell! I killed you; if I'm weak, you're less than nothing! Sesshomaru may be a bastard, he may even have taken Kagome – but I'd rather kill you once than be able to kill him a thousand times! At least he has an excuse for being the way he is – _you – __**you -**_"

Having evoked such a wrathful reaction, Naraku took one step back.

"Temper, temper, Inuyasha."

Around them, between them, darkness became shadow, and then dim blue light. Inuyasha's anger was partially defused by the shift; there was no rush of color, and after a moment, he realized that they had come into the night.

There was nothing but trees around them, a quiet wood, but a pulsation of power reached out from the depths of the forest; familiar power, great and growing. Quickly, Inuyasha turned and began to run in the direction of that swelling youki.

It was Sesshomaru's presence, wild in a way he had never felt - fully unleashed, his energy roaming senseless, without target or purpose.

As he ran, Naraku kept pace alongside him, gliding effortlessly, his robe and hair undisturbed by the wind of Inuyasha's passage.

"You are approaching your brother in the midst of his training. There is only one individual who dares stand by him, to offer encouragement or advice; a mere servant, who fears what would happen if your brother was left alone. Do you feel the weight of Sesshomaru's power, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha said nothing, but he could _feel_ the pressure, a steady thickening of the air; each of his movements was resisted, as if he were running through water. He took a hundred steps, and then another hundred – and then he was stuck, suddenly suspended in a flux of gold light like liquid, trapped like an insect in amber.

His mouth dropped open in surprise, and he struggled ineffectively. How – _why_ was this happening? This was only a vision, wasn't it? Not something..._real_?

Naraku laughed behind him, and the sound was caustic, but Inuyasha peered up and looked at Sesshomaru, standing silent with his eyes closed at the center of the maelstrom. A green and glowing aura clung to his skin; outside of that influence, his venomous _dokkasou_, glowing power looped and swam with the yellow brightness of the sun.

Utterly impressed, Inuyasha could only stare – and then it exploded. Sesshomaru's eyes opened to show bloody blankness, the red-eyed stared of the onrushing Inu. Gold glow became a shock-wave that bent the trees back and sent wind whistling like a typhoon of fury. Slower, green toxin followed, and melted wood and leaves and stone and earth to nothing.

Inuyasha's dreams of surpassing his brother's power faded into a single breathless moment of awe – and then, surprising even himself, a feeling of washed-out sadness.

* * *

><p>AN: 800 words! Go Sesshomaru go! Oh there's always a reason for everything...and...onward of course! One more chapter of Naraku and Inuyasha I think...possibly two, if I decide Naraku needs a second comeuppance...especially since I didn't write in his first defeat. But onward!

Please Review!


	125. Chapter 125

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXV

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Inconvenient_

Sensing weakness, Naraku came to stand in front of Inuyasha and gestured at Sesshomaru, who stood still now, silent, breathing deeply, moment by moment banishing the red-eyed glare of the Inu to some dark corner of his soul.

"Well, Inuyasha? What do you think now of your chances?"

Naraku was not prepared for the answer he received...or the smile that accompanied it.

"My _chances_? Not so good, if you mean...to get Kagome. To get Kagome, now I have to get through **that**..."

He shook his head. All Naraku's question had done was put in perspective a thought that had been at the back of his mind. He was unable to defeat his brother now; really, he had _never _been able to defeat his brother. Tetsusaiga had saved him, and even Tetsusaiga wouldn't be enough, without..._her_.

_Still – if even __**I**__ can't get at her, she's safe...safe. From everything but Sesshomaru, and she doesn't – she __**wants **__- _

A flash of anger rose in him and then burned out quickly, left him tight-eyed and almost breathless. More and more, he was beginning to grieve his loss – to see just what had been taken from him, and how _permanently_.

But Naraku was enraged. Something had happened, something he had not intended – but because Inuyasha did not speak, because his feelings had turned from wrath to grief, Naraku could not understand. What was it that had occurred beyond his control? How was it that tormenting his enemy could go wrong? This was Hell; before he had ever entered here, he had mastered the many arts of torture.

"Inuyasha! Why are you smiling, Inuyasha?"

But the hanyou ignored him and instead fixed his attention on his brother. A tall Inu had appeared at the blasted edge of the woodlands, and was swiftly approaching Sesshomaru, picking his way carefully over the melted ground.

An unpleasant vapor with which Inuyasha had once become intimately familiar drifted about still, but thankfully the wind was strong enough that it caused no problems. Having been immersed in a power so strong it had held him still even in this _unreality_, Inuyasha had no desire to test the strength of _dokkasou_ on his not-quite-body.

"Inuyasha!"

For the second time, he ignored Naraku's attempt to gain his attention, and strode forward quickly at the sound of other speech. He was just in time to hear the tail end of the new-comer's words to his brother, and then his brother's response.

"- _and I have never seen anything like that. My lord...how...what __**method**__ is this, that you are using to control your power?"_

"_It is a summoning."_

Inuyasha stepped closer still.

"_May I confide in you, Shizuka?_"

Sesshomaru's companion stood up straighter, and Inuyasha finally recognized one of the guardsmen that had protected his brother – years ago, for them.

"_Of course, my lord. It is my duty._"

"_Duty...yes. But would you keep my secrets even from my father, Shizuka? What would __**duty**__ tell you then?_"

There was a long moment of silence – but in the flickering vulnerability which was audible in his brother's exhausted voice, Inuyasha heard, for the first time, a _person_. Not a menace, or something to be hated, or an echo of a haunting and painful memory. Just..._someone_, who would grow to be someone else –

_Or maybe..._

But Shizuka spoke then, and Inuyasha broke off his train of thought to listen.

"_My lord, the oath I took to your father was an oath for your protection, nothing more. The oath I took to you – that was not only the oath of a guard, but an oath to a friend. You made friends of all of us who valued the life of Yuugao, and you have proved your own worth many times since. I __**will**__ keep your confidence._"

Barely, Sesshomaru smiled, and Inuyasha peered at the expression; it was like nothing he had seen on his brother's face before.

"_I am afraid, Shizuka. That is my secret."_

Silence stretched on into the night. And then:

"_I am afraid...of __**myself**__."_

The image faded. Thoughtful, Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at the wavering and vanishing image of Sesshomaru. The things that he was thinking _hurt_, but he could not deny them. He heard an echo and wondered if it was just in his head – his mother's voice, soft but penetrating.

"_You have more in common with your brother than you suspect, my son. You do not want to hear it, but it is true!_"

The truth was inconvenient, when more than anything else he wanted to hold onto hate for his brother – but he could not deny it.

Not when he was also afraid.

Not when even his _secret_ was the same.

* * *

><p>AN: 800 words! Mmm...and one more chapter of Naraku, before we go back to Kagome and Sesshomaru. Because I decided he needs to...well..something. I have _not _decided if I should let Inuyasha whup him, or if he should just be pwned by Inupapa...hehe. Pwned. Anyway, I'm taking suggestions...and Ihereby dedicate this chapter to the destruction of my upstairs neighbors, who have been louder than a truck stop full of motorcycle-riding wrestlers for...six hours now. Ahem. :D

Please Review!


	126. Chapter 126

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXVI

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

N: Narquois: _mocking, malicious_

In his moment of revelation, Inuyasha felt the world go whirling out from underneath him. What did it mean, that Sesshomaru shared more than violence with him? That he shared the utter, the _complete_ loss of their father...and a most terrible secret?

_I'm afraid of myself, too. Of the Inu that fights claw and fang for my soul – and is it worse for him, because he's full youkai? It's...it must be a harder fight, not easier. That's...I didn't ever __**think**__..._

He found himself wondering if this was something they _still_ shared; if the Sesshomaru who wandered the living world still kept his fear close...or if he had overcome it?

Quiet, ragged laughter slipped from Inuyasha's throat. How terrible this was – this knowledge, these answers, these _truths_. How terrible – because once he possessed them, once he knew them, he could never look at anything the same way again.

Sesshomaru was youkai – oh yes, very much the demon - but he was no monster. He was not heartless. He burned with passions and fears just as anyone else did; he lived and breathed, and it seemed somehow only fitting that both his pains and his pleasures would be greater than most could bear. Inuyasha found himself on the edge of admitting that Sesshomaru would be no worse for Kagome than he had been – that he needed her just as much, if not more – that perhaps, _perhaps - _

_To be together might be the best thing for both of them. But – but what about me?_

His thoughts had no answer. His eyes stayed focused on the darkness; he spoke out loud to himself, quietly, the questions that tormented him -

"If she stayed with him, would it be better for her? Will he give her darkness? I wonder...if she will ever forgive me – if she'll talk to me...my Kagome...my – _mate_...what have I done? The old man was right – I'll never be able to make it up to her -"

Behind him in the darkness there was Naraku's cackling laughter – but Inuyasha spun around as it quieted abruptly in the face of a familiar presence.

"So, my son. You have learned, it seems...and at the hands of this fool, no less. I have never been more disappointed in you than when you succumbed to his treachery, Inuyasha -"

Inuyasha clenched his fists tightly, and then relaxed as his father continued.

"Nor have I ever been more proud than the moment you finally defeated him. I think, that if you manage to gain your miko's forgiveness, I may change my opinion...but only then."

Scowling, Inuyasha looked away, but nodded. His gaze fell on Naraku, who stood mute as if clubbed into silence...and then had a wicked thought.

"Hey _father_, you owe me for making me listen to _him_ this whole while. Couldn't you come up with someone else? Even if you wanted an enemy -"

"Ah, but no one else would have served as well. When I asked myself, _who does Inuyasha hate more than he thinks he hates his brother_, only one name came to my mind. But you should not speak of debts, Inuyasha -"

"Then what about _fun? _I'd never say anything to her about it, but I've never been so _irritated_ as when Kagome purified this bastard. I wanted the final blow-"

His father only raised an eyebrow, and then nodded slowly.

"Perhaps it would be best for you to take out your frustration, then. After all – you must be contrite and humble to seek forgiveness. You must be kind and compassionate and willing to accept _retribution_, if that is what your _former victim_ desires. And being that this place is under my control, and that you are my son, and this _creature_ is a thing unworthy of name or consideration..."

Inuyasha chuckled darkly at the sight of Naraku shouting, open mouthed, while making absolutely no sound...and then was brought sharply back to reality by his father.

"But I forget, Inuyasha. You do not carry Tetsusaiga. Are you a match for him, alone?"

Reminded of his loss, all humor faded from Inuyasha's face. His features took on a grim and feral cast.

"I may be without my sword, but _he_ is without the shikon no tama. I _will_ kill him."

He turned back to look at Naraku, and was pleased, for the first time in his life, by the fear in someone's face when they looked at him.

"Ready, Naraku? I told you I'd kill you again if I got the chance; even in Hell, you aren't safe from me!"

The distorted shape of Naraku's mouth, open for a silent scream, reassured him that feigned skin would still _feel_.

* * *

><p>AN: Phew! 800 words! Long time of no updates, but real life has a way of doing that...at any rate, more is here, and I'm about two thirds of the way through the next chapter, so be not faint of heart! More shall be soon! Also, I must thank whoever nominated this fic for best lemon in the 3rd quarter :kowtow: thank you! :D Finally, take note: as of 11/5/11, I have edited the _entirety_ of Alpha as it is posted on Dokuga; some chapters have been rearranged, and several have had additions, some major, some minor, along with the usual business of cleaning up grammar, spelling, and punctuation. So! Consider taking a look back, and hopefully liking more! Hopefully I'll have time over the next few days to do the same thing on this posting of it, but FF net is more of a pain to mess with, so it might be a while.

Please Review!


	127. Chapter 127

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXVII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Victorious_

With a lunge, Inuyasha threw himself toward Naraku, claws flexing, and slashed four deep and narrow gashes across his chest. He was surprised to actually hear Naraku's cry of pain, but not displeased; the sound added depth to the battle, made it real.

Almost immediately, Naraku moved, the skin writhing on his flesh, transforming, growing. Bereft of the power of the shikon no tama, Naraku was left with only the shapeshifting abilities that were native to him and a deadly miasma. In death, he could no longer summon dark power; dark power had consumed him – Hell owned him.

It was a concession to the power of the Inu no Taisho, his influence even after death, which had allowed Naraku to enter this place. If he had been thinking, Naraku would have recognized that Inuyasha's father would not summon someone to teach his son – only to then destroy him.

But as it had in life, vengeance overpowered him; Naraku could not stand in the face of his _own_ feelings, his _own_ fury – never mind Inuyasha's.

Even as he moved, Inuyasha was already after him, faster than Naraku could hope to flee, reaching out with claws sharpened by a near-visible presence of youki.

In the face of_ this_ enemy, restored beyond all hope or hate, Inuyasha was fighting at a personal peak. He sought weak points with flashing eyes that hovered between red and gold, though he found himself fighting against a sea of roiling flesh – against a mass of tentacles thick and seeking, strong and instantly binding when they touched against his ankles, his thighs, his waist -

Inuyasha struggled against ropes of sickening muscle that tightened around him, crushing, oozing indigo miasma that infected the heaving breaths he could barely take.

"Maybe it is you who will die, Inuyasha! Do you feel that burning in your chest, burning in your blood?"

Inuyasha twisted, reaching for a clean breath, for an _inch_ of space. He screamed, yowling even without air – and then there was light. Crimson and glowing, it rose from his skin in a palpable aura of power that shredded aside the encircling tentacles and gouged out bloody gouts of flesh.

There, in the bloody darkness, Inuyasha found for the first time a leash of his own will strong enough to restrain the gaping bloodlust of the Inu inside him. Power flowed in him like the ocean's currents, undeniable, immovable, swelling and overcoming as the waves.

In the throes of a rage made more deadly by its focus, Inuyasha grappled with his bare hands against the core of Naraku's shifting flesh, ignoring the threads of miasma in the air and the tentacles that pulled against his limbs.

Naraku's attacks became more desperate, faster, but against the strength of the beast inside Inuyasha, chained to a single purpose, all his mockery and tricks were useless. Hanyou that he was, Inuyasha had been born to a power that Naraku at his height could barely confront. Even without Tetsusaiga to push that energy to a cutting edge, its very presence was devastating, a burning weight that consumed from all directions.

Flares of black energy, spikes of darkness, drove against the rush of Inuyasha's youki, but such was the difference of strength between them that Inuyasha did not even feel his foe's resistance.

He had been right, in his realizations – his power would never rival his brother's, not in immensity, not in intensity – but it was more than enough to squash Naraku's hopes for vengeful destruction. As the red light grew, the pulsing bits of Naraku that had been shed and discarded across the void began to smoke and writhe, then turned to dust.

Black ash blew from nowhere to nowhere. Naraku seemed to shrivel under the pressure, his changes flowing away, dispersing, condensing -

In a humanoid shape at last, pinned to his knees with Inuyasha's claws at his throat, Naraku struggled and spat but could not get free. Furious light stilled him; Inuyasha's claws dug deep into his throat, his belly, and rent his body apart.

The flowing blood was black and viscous, darker than the miasma and twice as poisonous. Inuyasha leapt away from the flow, and stood with a snarl of victory on his face.

The first time, Kagome's light had ended Naraku's life. In death, the bastard was drowning in his own darkness.

Slowly, as Naraku choked on his own spilling life, the red light faded into a crimson glow that clung to Inuyasha's eyes and skin, and then vanished. With a rumbling growl, he moved as if to approach his fallen foe, but his father's voice stopped him.

"Feel better?"

Inuyasha stretched, cracked his neck, and let out a long breath.

"Yeah. A little. Not about anything important, but – that was...relaxing."

His father laughed.

"You are my son, indeed. I must be honest, Inuyasha, there was more than amusement to my purpose; I wanted to reduce your frustration before we moved on. You were not only angry at your enemy."

It was not a question, and Inuyasha let out another breath.

"No. I'm angry...I'm angry at myself. And _you_. Even though that's got nothing to do with anything. And -"

"You are wrong, Inuyasha. Tell me why you are angry with me."

The Inu no Taisho's eyes had grown dark and intense. Inuyasha fidgeted, crossed his arms, looked away.

"I don't – I don't really feel like – it's none of your business, okay?"

"No. Why are you angry with me? Speak, Inuyasha! Tell me your grievance!"

There was a flash of fury from his son.

"You died! You died and left us alone! Me, and mother! You died, and she...she just...folded up and faded away like a flower."

And then Inuyasha shook himself, and looked up at his father with red renewed in his eyes.

"You died, and it's all your fault! _Everything_!"

His father did not deny it.

* * *

><p>AN: 1000 words! Ah...and so Inuyasha prepares to venture forth with his father...and we, dear readers, return to Kagome and Sesshomaru, who stand poised on the brink of something terrible and wonderful. Onward, and such things!

Please Review!


	128. Chapter 128

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXVIII

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

M: Magnality: _a wonderful thing_

In the Main Hall of Sesshomaru's_ shiro_, a bell rang in tones dark and sweet, welcoming the oncoming night. Kagome sat quietly, sipping on a final cup of tea and listening to the sounds that had swelled with the twilight: whispers, faint as the wind, passing by the entrance to the hall; the soft jingling of metal, as of weapons or heavy jewelry; the thrum of stringed instruments and a low and steady drumbeat.

The scent of dark incense, deep and full but faint, so that she could barely detect it, drifted by Kagome's nostrils. She closed her eyes, and held her cup in both hands, and let out a long breath.

Sesshomaru spent several minutes staring at the piece of folded paper that had been brought to him by messenger, his features shifting with discontent. There was a hard gleam in his eyes; twice, Kagome had caught him looking at her with a strange expression, but as she was finishing her tea he seemed to come to some conclusion and stood quickly, gathering the attention of Yoko and Shizuka to himself.

"Shizuka, you will come with me. There is something...we must attend to. Yoko, you will go with my mate. Your service to her begins now; tonight, this very hour, I will send females to her rooms from the Weaving Chambers."

"Yes, my lord."

As Shizuka stood and walked to the door, Sesshomaru looked back at Kagome's quizzical look; he did not smile, exactly, but something in his face grew...softer.

"I told you I would have something made for you, Kagome; did you think I had forgotten?"

The memory of the last time she had worn his haori leapt into her mind; she _had_ forgotten, or rather, she had not believed him to be serious.

Kagome found herself unexpectedly warmed by his care – by the fact that he had apparently made a point to remember, and by the thought of the moment in which he had made that promise. As he turned away and left, followed by Shizuka, Kagome wondered what it was that had been in his letter, and what it was that he was leaving to do...but Yoko was by her side in another moment, distracting and deferential both.

"My lady – Kagome, if you are through I will bring you to your rooms."

"Yes, I'm done."

Kagome put down her cup, and stretched.

" Are we going back to the Lower House?"

"No, that would not be...appropriate. You are Sesshomaru-dono's _mate_, no mere female, and a distinction must be made at once. There are rooms meant for one of your status and position, and I am sure that is where my lord means for you to stay...unless you would prefer otherwise, my lady?"

Kagome shook her head vigorously and stood carefully; one did not make good impressions by toppling face first onto the dinner table.

"Whatever you think is best for now, Yoko – whatever you think Sesshomaru would prefer."

"I would prefer that you are comfortable, mate."

Startled, Kagome turned swiftly and saw that Sesshomaru had returned and was standing in the door behind her.

"There are rooms and wings and Halls that lie empty all over this mountain; tonight, stay in the Lady's Chambers; tomorrow, choose your own place – any place you desire."

And, to Yoko:

"Quickly. The Silk Mistress waits."

Yoko's eyes widened as he vanished again, and she began to tug Kagome along, moving quickly out the door Sesshomaru had vacated and down a long hallway that led to a covered bridge. Kagome peered behind her for a moment, watching Sesshomaru disappear, but she turned back to Yoko with a distracted smile as her sleeve was tugged.

"This way, my lady. Even for Sesshomaru-dono, the Silk Mistress will not wait long. She is...easily aggravated, and _most _disrespectful of her lord. I think he finds her amusing."

Kagome blinked.

"Who is this...person?"

Yoko paused outside an elaborately painted _shoji_, one hand on the door.

"She is the Silk Mistress, a weaver of garments and tapestries. She and her brood are masters of thread-craft; there are none better."

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words! And onward...because I felt bad about having taken a long time, and have been writing like mad to make up for it :p I dedicate this chapter to YamiBakura1988, who has reviewed on...an insane number of chapters at ff net! Everyone should do that! :p

Please Review!


	129. Chapter 129

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXIX

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

X:Xanthippe: _ill-tempered woman_

A thick and sensuous voice reached through the shoji, chuckling and then speaking in rich tones.

"It is good to hear someone speak well of me; are you sent with the evening meal? It...has such a _sweet_ smell..."

A_ frisson_ of pale terror climbed Kagome's spine at the sound of that voice, but with a supreme effort of will, she quenched it, and nodded at Yoko's questioning expression. Yoko slid the door open, took twelve steps forward and bowed. Slowly, her steps swaying between nervousness and elegance, Kagome entered behind her and stood one pace ahead, wetting her lips with her tongue.

The figure that confronted her shook the carefully fastened cover of her fear. She stared up into eyes of utter black without iris or pupil, perfect almonds whose surface glittered like faceted gems. They were insect eyes, _spider_ eyes, and Kagome blinked, and then forced herself to look away, to look at anything else.

She took in a curvaceous form of feminine beauty distorted by four extra arms and a hovering, predatory presence. Full red lips were smiling with sensuous intentions; but those eyes -

A flicker of impatience woke in them, blue and darting in the infinite black.

"Well? Speak, servant; I was summoned for the mate of Sesshomaru-dono! Where is she?"

The eyes skipped over Kagome completely, dismissed Yoko as beneath their notice. Hesitantly, half-smiling, Kagome spoke.

"I...I am Kagome. I am Sesshomaru's mate."

There was a moment of silence, and then cackling laughter.

"You? _You? _Oh little human, if I were you I would be silent, lest I call his wrath upon me..."

Yoko spoke up at once, her tone frosty.

"You will be the one on whom his wrath falls. This _is_ his mate; he has summoned you here to dress her according to her station!"

Again, there was laughter; Yoko shook her head and stepped back.

"My lady, it is best if you teach her."

Kagome stared at her new companion blankly.

"Teach her?"

In that moment, a certain number of things _clicked_. The threat that hovered over her, and over Sesshomaru; her humanity, and the trouble it would cause, even if she was somehow to leave here and never return. She remembered what she had read in Izayoi-hime's book, and she remembered the tale of fear she had pieced together in bits and pieces; the tale that had begun Inuyasha's life.

And chose _not _to live it.

The laughter of the Silk Mistress grew suddenly dim as a pink and burning aura grew in waves and ripples from Kagome's skin. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, allowing the power to expand and fill her, rising from the quiet places of her soul.

As she did so, she felt the twin presence of youki in the room, dark and vibrating under the pressure of her power. Carefully, she finessed her swelling strength. It passed Yoko by with a brush of unbearable sweetness, and bore down on the Silk Mistress.

Defiant, she heard the laughter continue for a few moments; after came a silence, and heavy breathing. The pressure increased. The sweetness was burning and pressed on all Yoko's senses; Kagome stood utterly still, half in a trance -

Finally came the screams.

Immediately, as if a switch had been shut off, Kagome's power evaporated, drawn back towards her skin in a great concentration of light that glowed over her body for a single instant. She opened her eyes to a smoking, panting figure; the Silk Mistress was on her knees, hunched over, supporting her weight on two pairs of arms while the third curled protectively around her body.

Her unfathomable eyes still glittered, but there was respect in them now, and fear.

"My lady...my lady, I will stitch for you the finest robes, the finest, from my own silk. My lady..."

Several minutes passed, in which the effects of Kagome's brief display faded, and the Silk Mistress stared at Kagome with a strange expression, unable to understand why she still lived. When she could stand, she did, and was surprised to find Kagome's hands reaching out, lifting her, helping her, despite a flinch which she could not prevent.

The sound of Kagome's voice surprised her too, curious and somehow warm.

"Now that _that's_ out of the way – will you tell me your name? And then maybe we can get started on my clothes."

The Silk Mistress blinked twice, and then gestured for Kagome to disrobe while she reached for the stick she used to mark measurements.

"My name is Aya, Kagome-dono. Please, stand still."

Outside the half-closed _shoji,_ where he had been watching, Sesshomaru made a small, satisfied sound that was noticed by no one but Yoko.

_She_ only smiled.

* * *

><p>AN: 800 words! See, just like I said, more chapter :D Coming Soon: new clothes...and probably citrus. Cause...it's just so tasty. Also, thanks to anyone who voted for this fic in Dokuga awards; it has won 3rd place in the "Best Lemon" category :D So Exciting!

Please Review!


	130. Chapter 130

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Imperial_

Ignoring his own pressing responsibilities, Sesshomaru stood outside Kagome's door and listened to what was going on inside. The low murmur of power and conversation faded quickly into a rustle of silk and occasional sharp commands.

"Turn to the left, my lady."

"Yes, and so – now, to the right. Careful!"

"Very well. I will make these ready. And crested robes in white and gold -"

Sesshomaru could not discern the words in Kagome's muffled response, but he heard the Silk Mistress laughing and wondered if his mate might not possess some unique power...something that could charm youkai to her will.

He heard Kagome's laughter follow Aya's, richer and lighter; he was growing used to that sound, becoming familiar with it. It pleased him that Kagome had not let fear fester in her, had not let the memory of the first time she had _visited _here overwhelm her.

_She is too forgiving for her own good – but how could I say it? Her forgiveness – it allows me to come close to her. _

Her earlier reaction, while he had been dressing her, both encouraged him and soothed him; even without power, the pressure of lust he could control, she still seemed to desire him -

But then, why would she not?

_I was rough with her, but she submitted; easily, she returned to me, despite her words of anger. She responds so well to my touch, begs so well for more, always more -_

He drew a deep breath to calm his thoughts. Kagome's scent and the piquancy of her power were an overriding sweetness that dominated the room and drifted out to tease him in the hallway. He found himself on the edge of smiling, wondered at it with confusion instead of anger, and then wiped the expression from his face entirely as a line of females walked out of Kagome's rooms.

A few of them gave him startled glances, but they moved quickly under Yoko's stern direction, each one burdened with an armful of silk. He recognized bolts that had lain untouched for many years in the warehouses of the Lower House – lengths of Suzhou gauze and Korean brocade, light and dark and plain and patterned, red and blue, green and yellow, periwinkle and pearl.

_Is the Silk Mistress fitting her for a wardrobe, and not a garment? I had expected argument for even that much...or worse than arguments when she saw that Kagome was human. Is it only the fear of being purified that has brought about this change?_

If that was the truth, it was no more than what he had hoped for; still, he found his thoughts turning, and he wondered. How had Kagome accomplished this? Not on purpose; she was bright, intelligent, but not clever in a way that would allow her to use people. She had used her terrible power as a warning, to give a hint of her strength and nothing more. Was _that_ enough to cow the Silk Mistress?

_Such has never worked for me -_

Perhaps it was only Kagome, the reality of her presence. He had never met any female so full of joy and yet so regal; in glimpses, he had begun to see into her heart, where she lived as a Princess enthroned, yet unaware. Her attitude was imperial, but never arrogant; her smiles were always full of light, never superior...her eyes always honest, her gaze always kind.

_And that – that is enough to tame the Spider, to soothe her hunger for human flesh? _

For a moment, his eyes narrowed; and then he relaxed.

_It is appropriate; she is my Lady. This...kindness she gives away so freely...that is a good and useful thing._

Sesshomaru took one step to the side, and pushed the door open a little further with one hand as wind washed over him, not much more than a breeze but flush with youki. He followed the sound of a chitinous clattering through an open _shoji_ at the far corner of the room. Just inside the smaller chamber, the Silk Mistress in her Spider's shape was huddled, all her legs moving quickly, flickering almost faster than his eyes could follow.

A pale, silvery sheen of silk began to take shape, and Sesshomaru turned to seek out Kagome with his eyes, satisfied.

He found only her silhouette, behind a screen, and watched, his eyes glued to her shifting, shadowy shape, as she pulled robes from her body one by one and then darted back and forth in the nude putting on her own clothes.

He tracked the sway of her hips and watched her bend, sliding her panties up her legs – watched her bounce on the toes of her feet, her breasts swaying – watched her sweep her hair out out of the way and stretch in a way that was almost obscene –

He watched, and then slid open the door the rest of the way and took five steps in. Yoko took one look at him, the creeping hint of darkness in his eyes, the peering glitter of his fangs, and then caught the scent of youki inextricably twined with lust, and backed away from him, bowing deeply.

"My lord; your mate changes behind the screens."

With youkai swiftness, Yoko darted across the room and disappeared into the chamber that was currently occupied by the weaving Silk Mistress.

Left alone with Kagome, though she did not know it, Sesshomaru prowled around the screened corner, dissecting Kagome's scent – confusion, contentment, the hint of sorrow that followed her like a trail of incense...anxiety, pleasure, and the _sakura_ flavor of her power.

Silently, he walked around the edge of a screen and into her view, and was pleased when she responded with a smile to his presence.

"Sesshomaru! Have you finished with your business?"

He shook his head, moved closer. With one hand, he reached out and caressed the peach toned paleness of skin at her waist.

* * *

><p>AN: 1000 words and another chapter! Even though I used the prompts for Wayfarer, DDN last night was inspiring – and so I bring you this chapter! There may actually be another one later, but I want to devote some time to rewriting the Lost Chapter of Bloodlust, which my computer ATE. WHOLE. Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to Lillian, who has decided to stand in for my muse :D May her flowery doom encompass you all!

Please Review!


	131. Chapter 131

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Bluebell: Delicacy_

Kagome flushed, as if realizing only at that moment that she was not yet fully dressed, and Sesshomaru forced his fingers to stillness, left them resting gently on her ribs.

"I have not yet attended to my..._business_, as you call it. Shizuka will attend to the necessary preparations."

Kagome was intrigued, and raised an eyebrow, but Sesshomaru was not yet ready to have _that_ discussion with her – the discussion that would include his mother – and changed the subject deftly, turning it in the direction he desired.

"I came to...check on you, mate. To ensure you were well. The Silk Mistress is not...fond of humans."

_At least, not **living **humans._

Kagome smiled, her pleasure at his concern obvious, and lay a hand on his arm reassuringly.

"It's all right, Sesshomaru. Aya and I have an understanding; she doesn't try to eat me, and I don't try to purify her. I think I managed to convince her which one of us would come off worse in that kind of contest."

Kagome's smile became a grin, and Sesshomaru allowed a flicker of amusement to show on his face, made sure that she saw it. It silenced her, as he had intended, and in her moment of shock he leaned forward and drew his tongue lightly over her lips, then pulled her close and kissed her, deeply, harshly. He tasted blood, her blood, and pulled back just long enough to lick her lips clean of it, an apology - and then he kissed her again, and again, and again -

"Mate; Kagome..."

He murmured her name against her lips, and felt her shudder of want, scented it like a wavering wisp of smoke in the air between them, a dancing ribbon of desire.

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><p>AN: 300 words! Sesshomaru is naughty...and the next chapter is smut. :p I know, I know, what am I waiting for? Well...sleep. More tomorrow!

Please Review!


	132. Chapter 132

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXII

Prompt From GMDDN: #2

_Hair_

Sesshomaru's claws traced the line of Kagome's cheek, her jaw, the half-parted plumpness of her lips.

"I should take you here, now, make you scream for me, make them know, all of them, that you are mine..."

He grinned, the first real expression she had ever seen on his face, and it was beautiful, and terrible - pure demon, that smile!

"Kagome...come here, mate."

Quite suddenly, the clothes she had half-dressed in were unfastened, undone, put aside. Knowing what he would ask, remembering the last time he had touched her, Kagome reached out for the ties and buckles of his armor, his robes...but he stopped her, and redirected her hands to the sash of his obi.

"You wish to touch me, Kagome? To...please me?"

Hesitant, Kagome fixed her eyes on the knot she was untying and nodded slowly, blushing terribly.

His response was immediate.

"On your knees."

"Sessho...Sesshomaru?"

Kagome stared up at him in surprise. She knew what he was asking, and she was not totally averse to the idea; she was a modern girl, with modern sensibilities. No - it was who he was, bothering her; the presence of him: _Sesshomaru._

_But what is the point of thinking that, now? I left him - no, be honest. He told me to go, because I was… being stupid. And then I came back, begging for him to – to -_

Her flush deepened, darkened. He watched her with red eyes as she sank slowly to the floor; the sight of her stirred an arousal that needed no stirring. Kagome took a breath, and reached out with one hand to steady him...to steady _herself_.

_This is what I wanted - this is what I came here for - to be touched by him, and to touch him…to be his, because there is no one else for me now. And...I do want him, I do -_

Her mouth was wet silk around him, sudden, engulfing. Sesshomaru almost threw her off instinctively - and then he could do nothing. For a moment, he had forgotten that she was human, that there were no fangs in her mouth. In the absence of that threat, the sensation - the sensation was -

_Incredible. Little miko, if you had not come back to me - I - _

"Ah - "

He smelled arousal from her, suddenly sharper, as he could not restrain the sound.

"You like it, when I -"

Liquid, unavoidable, another groan escaped him. Again, and he felt her moan, a pulse of vibration that brought his hand up to the back of her head. He wrapped her hair around his fist, pulling it tight, holding it at full tension, controlling her movements, the speed of his pleasure. She moaned beneath him, turned her head just the tiniest bit, and then back, responding to his intake of breath.

Sensation coiled in him like a whip of fire, circling endless beneath her tongue – soft, wet, stroking the most sensitive spots, find them over, and over, and over -

His groans became a growl, suspended, protracted. Her lips were smooth, her tongue rough, her rhythm relentless, driving him closer and close to an irretrievable moment -

"Kagome - !"

He had never before said her name in a moment of pleasure; he felt her hands tighten on his thighs convulsively, felt the coolness of her indrawn breath on his hot, wet -

Harshly, he gripped her hair, thrust back into her mouth. Her eyes widened for a moment, and then he felt her fingers grasping again, the moving length of her tongue, and could no longer hold back. Sesshomaru spilled himself into her mouth, watched a milky white stream drip from the corner of her lips to her chin, and leaned back.

He held her hair in his fist still, wrapped like a glove around and between his fingers; he liked it that way. It reminded him of the harshness that connected them, the tight bondage of lust...and the moments between, like this one.

* * *

><p>AN: This is...what happens...when the SMUT TAKES OVER! This WAS 300 words of GMDDN. Now...it's...647 words of...I can't even believe I wrote it. More tomorrow!

Please Review!


	133. Chapter 133

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXIII

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

U: Ubique: _everywhere_

Kagome swallowed convulsively, tasted heat and spice and honey, and then moaned, shuddering, as Sesshomaru's fingers tightened in her hair. She licked her lips, a compulsive, unconscious movement that brought a pleased gleam to Sesshomaru's eye, and laid her head against his thigh for a long moment.

Gradually his fingers loosened, and Kagome shivered as he dragged his claws gently across her scalp, stroked them through her hair. It was anything but relaxing; it sent shudders and chills darting down her back and into her limbs, left even her fingers tingling.

Sesshomaru watched her responses carefully. It had not been his intention to lose himself so completely in the moment, but the scent of her undiminished arousal encouraged him, set up new rumblings of desire. She _liked_ to please him so? She desired him more the more open he was with his wanting, it seemed – and the more she desired him the happier he was to show her.

He let his hands wander across her nakedness, and then, impatient, lifted her up onto the desk against which he had been leaning. She blushed, a pink flush that heated her whole body, and he drew his tongue along the muscle in her calf, behind her knee and across the smooth flesh of her inner thigh. He heard her sharp intake of breath, and knew what she was anticipating, wanting, _needing_...

Instead he stood and leaned over her, almost close enough to kiss her – almost.

_It will be best if she tells me what she wants. The more she says, the more words pass her lips – the more she admits, the less there is for her to hide behind._

"You must talk to me, Kagome. You must tell me...your desire."

"I _want_ -"

_Your hands – your mouth – everywhere_.

A/N: 300 words! A bit of a tease...and onward!

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	134. Chapter 134

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXIV

Prompt From The Alphabet Challenge

S: Saccadic: _jerky, twitching_

Kagome couldn't speak her thoughts, but she _wanted_ to – and want became more and more intense, more moving, with each moment that passed. Sesshomaru teased her lightly, firing her nerves, denying her real sensation. The tips of his claws moved like ghosts over her ribs, drawing out her breath; he let his fingers drift up, taunting her breasts into points, and down, sinking in and out of wetness.

"Say it, Kagome. Speak your need; tell me, mate."

Sesshomaru made sure she saw his eyes on her, and then reached out and spread apart the wet lips of her sex. He used the tip of one finger to excite her, playing with softness, light a fire that burned from her toes to the motion of his hand and up into her belly.

"Kagome..."

His tongue flickered out over his lips, and she let out a moan and twisted towards him, raising her body to his touch. Breathy words and sounds escaped her mouth; she jerked and twitched, seeking more contact, more torment, more pleasure.

_More_.

"More, I want more, oh please, won't you give me more? Sesshomaru..._Sesshomaru_..."

Sesshomaru barely smiled.

"More, Kagome? More..._what_?"

The word rolled off his tongue carrying endless depths of meaning; Kagome's resistance crumbled into dust.

"Touch me, touch me – touch me, and then g-give me your mouth."

She heard him laughing, a low and dark sound, and then felt his fingers painting with wetness on her thighs, slipping inside her, moving up and around the hard focus of her pleasure. Eagerly now, the barrier of embarrassment broken by desire, Kagome panted her instructions, as aroused by the glittering desire in Sesshomaru's face as she was by what his hands were doing to her.

"Don't – don't _stop..._so _good_ inside me – _Sesshomaru..._"

A/N: 300 words! Again! :p For Lilli, because she threatened me with EVIL BEARS! So scary. Anyways, conclusion of smut coming soon, and then a grand and terrible visit looms on the horizon!

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	135. Chapter 135

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXV

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Sparkle_

It didn't take very long for Kagome to lose all sense of herself in the rough-soft motion of Sesshomaru's tongue; she was still eager for her pleasure with the enthusiasm of one new to it. Each new spot, each sensitive nerve he touched and teased sparkled with exotic sensation.

Sesshomaru watched through red eyes as she writhed, felt her fingers tugging at his hair as she tried to pull him this way and that. He denied her the control she was seeking; instead, he wrapped his lips _just so _around the little bud she desperately wanted him to touch.

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><p>AN: Mm...100 words, from DDN...which...yeah, I wrote smut. Bad me. More to come, I expect. Onward!


	136. Chapter 136

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXVI

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Crackle_

Gently, Sesshomaru began to flick his tongue back and forth.

Kagome's hips spasmed and shook with each _flick_; her body vibrated and crackled as muscles strained toward a release that was just out of reach. Sesshomaru closed his eyes for a moment as she let out a deep, guttural groan – and then her twisting movements redoubled as she panted words one after another, completely unaware.

"Please, please, please, please, _please_...don't stop, oh don't stop – so close, so close...Sesshomaru – _Sesshomaru_ -"

Sesshomaru listened to the flow of Kagome's words with great pleasure, feeling his own desire spike.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...smuts continuing...onwards!

Please Review!


	137. Chapter 137

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXVII

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Bright_

Sesshomaru could feel her climax coming quickly in the muscles that clenched and quivered under his tongue. Instead of giving it to her he stood and let his fingers take over.

Savoring every moment, he held her legs apart and entered her, feeling the wetness and the heat tighten, and tighten, until he was buried inside her completely. He felt her eyes on him, bright as stars - his fingers moved a little faster and she moaned...wailed... begged...

As slowly as he had entered her, he thrust, enjoying the sensation of her body doing its own begging, always tighter around him.

* * *

><p>AN: Another hundred words, another continuance of onward...

Please Review!


	138. Chapter 138

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXVIII

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Toast_

At that moment, Kagome knew only pleasure, only feeling. She had been aroused beyond belief, kneeling in front of him, taking him in her mouth; his fingers and his tongue had brought her so close to the peak she wanted that she could barely breathe, and now he was _keeping_ her there, dragging out a moment across many, her nerves bubbly with lust.

Her tongue ran over her lips; she tightened her legs around Sesshomaru's body and pressed herself upward, reaching for him, arching her back -

And then she noticed them, two youkai she had not met, standing at the threshold, staring at her.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...more...coming soon :D

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	139. Chapter 139

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXXXIX

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Bubbly_

Sesshomaru's sharp thrust at that moment, the squeezing of his fingers, met a sudden rush of heat that propelled Kagome into a blank moment of feeling. She heard her own cries, felt the rough, exquisite pleasure of his fingertips still teasing that swollen bundle of nerves, felt the deeper, more desperate climax still waiting within her.

"Harder...harder _please_, oh...harder..."

Her thoughts were tangled, kept getting caught:

_Sesshomaru...inside me – and they - and they - and someone's – **watching** -_

She stared over Sesshomaru's shoulder at the twin youkai, and her want reached a bubbling peak.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...and once again, more almost immediately :p Yay for DDN :D

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	140. Chapter 140

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXL

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Resolution_

Kagome had no way of knowing that sex was not something to be hidden among youkai; that it was considered an admission of weakness to hide the act of pleasure. She knew only that the thought of those twin pairs of eyes on her, glittering with arousal, had woken something that _demanded_ to be sated. She _wanted_ the climax Sesshomaru was driving her toward, despite the fact that they were being watched. She felt contradictory sensations and let out a strained, pleading cry.

Sesshomaru's hands at her hips tensed, but he ignored the fact that there were other youkai in the room.

* * *

><p>AN: Another hundred words...onward!


	141. Chapter 141

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLI

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Ball_

He gave Kagome no warning, but increased his pace; it was more than enough to send her careening over the edge. She was tied to the snarl of pleasure and release on his face...to the heat inside her...to the _eyes_ on her; all of it fed the ball of furious pleasure wound up tight beneath his touch...until it broke.

With something closer to a scream than a cry, Kagome pressed herself tight against Sesshomaru and let her climax washed over her in waves. He held her for a moment, while she shuddered and went limp, and then set her gently on her feet.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...bwaha.

Please Review!


	142. Chapter 142

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLII

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Caress_

"Ryoichiro – a robe for my mate."

Though she stood on her own feet now, Kagome still trembled in the aftermath of so much sensation. She wanted a bath...and to sleep.

_Yes, sleep sounds good right about now. _

She was so flushed from Sesshomaru's _attentions_ that she couldn't blush more...but neither could she meet the eyes of the twin who plucked a robe from a screen and handed it to Sesshomaru. Swiftly, with the easy movements, Sesshomaru tied Kagome into the thin layer of silk, and then touched her cheek gently.

The eyes of both watching Inu widened at the caress.

* * *

><p>AN: Onward again...arrrgh, I have so many chapters to post...

Please Review!


	143. Chapter 143

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLIII

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_Midnight_

When Kagome was reasonably dressed, Sesshomaru turned to the two Inu standing quietly by the door and finished adjusting his own clothing.

"You have a good reason for interrupting me, I hope?"

It was the second brother, Kenichiro, who answered.

"Shizuka sent us; your oversight is needed for the festival preparations. Also...the..._other_ matter -"

Sesshomaru's eyes darkened, and Kenichiro fell silent immediately. The gold tones of lust were quickly fading back into dark, still amber; _dangerous_.

"Very well. I will accompany you."

And, to Kagome:

"I may return after midnight; Yoko will take you to bed."

* * *

><p>AN: Onward to one more chapter from New Year's DDN

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	144. Chapter 144

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLIV

Prompt From New Year's Eve DDN

_First Kiss_

After Sesshomaru had left, Yoko came out of her self-imposed seclusion and brought Kagome to the rooms that belonged to the Lady of the West. They were rich rooms, opulent in youkai fashion – a startling contrast to what Kagome had found in the Lower House. Here, everything was silk and fur, silver and bone.

"Your onsen, Kagome-sama."

Kagome's smiled her thanks and then divested herself of her clothes and slid into the water.

As she bathed, she contemplated Sesshomaru and all her interactions with him – from death threats, to that first kiss...to this moment.

* * *

><p>AN: Ahh the last prompt from the New Year's DDN...took a while to figure that one out. No more smuts for a while, I think...gotta get the plot going. But chapters should be pretty fast, cause I've got a bunch written ahead.

Please Review!


	145. Chapter 145

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLV

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Evolution_

Clean, dry, and robed in soft silk, Kagome sat in a low chair and submitted to Yoko's combing of her hair. Kagome sat quietly, trying to pull her questions into order, wondering if this new _companion_ was really someone who could be trusted.

_Then again, if I don't try to trust her, I'll never know if I could've or not._

Determination straightened her spine, and Kagome peered at the Dragon female out of the corner of one eye.

"Kagome-sama, you must have questions about your place here..."

Yoko spoke quietly, her voice in time with the smooth movements of the comb in her hand.

"Actually, I..."

Kagome flushed read, and held her breath for a moment before trying again.

"I wondered – um...about...about what happened...earlier..."

"At the evening meal?"

Kagome squeezed her eyes tight shut.

"N-no. After – Sesshomaru and I were...um -"

"Does my lady need instruction in how to please my lord?"

Kagome stared at her wide-eyed for a moment. Unbidden, images flashed across her mind – Sesshomaru's snarl of passion, the liquid heat of his groan when she used her tongue to...

"_No_!"

And then again, more calmly:

"No...no...thank you, Yoko. That's not it. I wondered about...privacy?"

The last word out came doubtfully, as if she was not sure if it was quite the right one to use.

"A pair of Inu came in while Sesshomaru and I were..."

Again, she flushed. Yoko continued to comb her hair calmly, amusement showing only in her eyes.

"Anyway, I wondered if that was...normal? For them to just...walk in, like that."

At that, Yoko paused mid-stroke.

"Normal? Hmm...Kagome-sama, I have some experience with humans, and this may be difficult for you to understand. Among youkai, sex is not a hidden thing. To_ make_ it so is to admit a vulnerability."

Kagome paled, and sat very still.

"My lady must know that Sesshomaru-dono would never do anything that might make him appear weak."

"Yes. I – know that. Is there...anything _else_ I should know?"

"About this matter? No, Kagome-sama. But if I may advise my lady..."

She paused, and Kagome realized she was actually asking a question.

"Of course! Always, Yoko."

"Then I would say that it would be best for you to accept this quickly...and move on to other things. There is a great deal that you do not know, and every unanswered question will be dangerous."

Kagome shivered a little, reminded of Sesshomaru's warning – and then straightened, remembering his praise.

"Thank you, Yoko – for answering my questions, and for your advice. If only I didn't want to shout Sesshomaru's ears off now..."

Yoko put down the comb and came around to sit by Kagome's side, where she could see the young woman's face, scrunched with anger that believed itself righteous.

"Kagome-sama, you should not be angry with your mate. How would he know human ways? Who would have taught him? All Sesshomaru-dono knows and feels is youkai. This embarrassment of yours...it will not serve you well. The rousing of the Inu in him could push him to take you any time; Sesshomaru-dono is more restrained than this usually, I know, but even he has limits."

Kagome's eyes widened.

"Do not think that Sesshomaru-dono will be lenient with those whose eyes linger too long on you; with those that show an interest in the body that is my lord's alone to mark. There is a casual courtesy among us that prevents such things...but as with so much else, it is often pointless to even attempt to ignore it."

And a sly expression of humor crossed Yoko's face.

"After all, Kagome-sama – arousal has its own particular scent, and _you_, at least, are loud enough to let the whole island know what you were doing."

"Ah – _hey_!"

For a moment, Kagome covered her face with her hands, blushing furiously, and then she dissolved into laughter. Yoko smiled, glad to have pleased her new Lady, and sat back on her heels, contemplating everything she had learned about humans.

She could see already one vital necessity; Kagome needed to grow...to change...to evolve. To accept the vital motives and purposes of youkai life without altering her essential character.

Yoko stared at the young woman before her, bright with power; she remembered Kagome's clear acceptance of her little Kitsune's needs, and the tone of her questions, curious – excited.

She found herself wondering if it would be Kagome who changed to fit the demands of youkai society...or if ten thousand years of tradition could possibly survive the looming conflict.

_Probably not_.

Yoko was tempted to laugh out loud, but she did not think her new Lady would understand her reasoning; not yet.

* * *

><p>AN: So, to make up for the fact that the last ten chapters only had 100 words each, this chapter has...800 words! Yaaay 800! I think this is all for today...I think...

Please Review!


	146. Chapter 146

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLVI

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Paradigm_

"What can you tell me about S – about my mate, Yoko?"

The Dragon shrugged, and began to order sparkling hair ornaments that had been laid aside in disarray.

"I know more of his power than of him, Kagome-sama. Indeed, I have not been in his presence before today. It is said that he bears Tenseiga, a fang that may awaken a beating heart out of stillness. It is the twin of Tetsusaiga, long the object of my Lord's desire; one a weapon of unrivaled destruction, the other a ward against the Darkness."

"I...I see."

"Has my Lord shown you the Hall of Cursed Swords, Kagome?"

"We walked past it, and he said something – something...odd. About..._lessons_?"

Yoko nodded gravely.

"Yes. My lord once carried another powerful blade, tempered steel, infused with his own great power after long years of training and much spilled blood."

She sighed.

"It lays now, gathering dust; it claimed two lives, both of them important. Those shadows lay on the sword...and on him. The day that he lay aside that sword was the day everything about him changed; the day of an overwhelming shift. But _that_ sword - it has a recent companion."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words...isn't DDN great? It causes so many chapters to appear! I will be posting these out of their original order, though, for the sake of continuity, so...yeah. If you read them in DDN, it isn't you – it's me. I hereby dedicate this chapter to r0o, who reviews unfailingly with awesomeness :D

Please Review!


	147. Chapter 147

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLVII

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Truss_

"Kagome, forgive, but you obviously have not spent much time among youkai. Tell me, what do you know of my Lord's power?"

Kagome blinked, and then hugged her knees.

"I know he's – strong, and fast...that he has poison...but that's...mostly it."

Yoko shook her head again, this time in a more scolding manner.

"What _are_ you doing, knowing none of these things? My Lord bears a sword with a most mysterious power. Of this I have told you; of his desire for the Tetsusaiga, you already know..."

She watched Kagome closely for a moment, and Kagome did her best to keep the thoughts _that_ stirred up off her face. She thought she did well, because Yoko continued without comment.

"But his _strength – _that is not a thing to be measured in mere words. He carries the strongest youki I have ever felt,trussed up tighter than should be possible. What my brother has told me says that this is not enough for Sesshomaru-dono. Perhaps...he does not believe it."

Yoko shook her head.

"To hear Shizuka tell it, the great Inu no Taisho was not so _great_ after all...at least, not where his son was concerned."

* * *

><p>AN: Bwhaha...evil hints, evil hints! Onward and such!

Please Review!


	148. Chapter 148

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXLVIII

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Allolalia _

Yoko looked at Kagome for a long moment, as if contemplating, and then shook her head slightly.

"There is only one reason why there is so much you do not know. Sesshomaru-dono manipulates you; he is cunning, just as his father was cunning, but knowing this will not be enough to keep you away. Like _that __woman_."

"Is she...by _that woman_, do you mean Inuyasha's mother? Izayoi-hime?"

She received a tight nod in reply.

"And – is she the one that he -"

"She is the one that he never speaks of; the one we, too, are forbidden from speaking of."

"I...I see."

Yoko leaned back, her hands pressed together.

"My lady wishes to know about the mother of my lord's half-brother."

"Yes. But I don't want you to get in trouble -"

"My lady should not worry. It is only natural, this curiosity. Izayoi-hime was human woman who loved a demon, and you are a human woman who loves a demon. Not only that, but she was the lover of the father of your mate."

She smiled faintly.

"Perhaps while I am not paying attention, the words will just...slip out of my mouth."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! This prompt was EVIL! Syn did it...she did she did. But...a chapter became, so I suppose it was worth it!

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	149. Chapter 149

Drabble Collection Alpha

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

CXLIX

_Reprobate_

With Yoko's reassurance foremost in her thoughts, Kagome asked another hesitant question.

"Do you think I am like Izayoi-hime?"

Yoko shook her head.

"My lady is full of fire; Izayoi-hime had cooler passions. My lady is full of power; Izayoi-hime was only woman, and vulnerable. My lady is content in the presence of youkai; my lady is full of laughter. As time went by, Izayoi-hime lost even her smile; she became quiet at the end, afflicted by her worries, for herself and for her son. Though I saw her infrequently, and from a distance only, these things I know."

A spark of curiosity burned bright in Kagome's eyes.

"Worries...for herself and her son, but not for her mate?"

And Yoko raised an eyebrow.

"My lady has misunderstood an important detail. The mate of my lord's father was my lord's mother; when my lord's father took Izayoi-hime, it was as a lover, only – as mother to his son, but not as an equal – not as a true partner. It is partially for this reason that Sesshomaru-dono thinks of her as a godless woman...a tramp and reprobate, no fit companion for a Daiyoukai."

Kagome's eyes opened wide in understanding.

* * *

><p>AN: Yet again, 200 words...one more chapter of Yoko and Kagome, and then we'll take a peek at what preparations Sesshomaru has been making! ::plots of doom::

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	150. Chapter 150

Drabble Collection Alpha

CL

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Jape_

"So...Izayoi-hime was a human princess, and the Inu no Taisho took her for a...well, a concubine, I guess. And then she had Inuyasha, and everything went pear-shaped."

Yoko blinked at Kagome curiously when she had finished speaking.

"_Pear_-_shaped_, my lady? Is that...a jape?"

"Oh, no - sorry, it's just an expression. It means...when things don't go the way you wanted."

Yoko's eyebrows lifted.

"Mmm...in that case, things went "pear-shaped" long before the birth of the hanyou. Not long after Izayoi-hime came to the island there were...incidents. Twice, the Inu no Taisho saved her from death or worse at the last moment. Many more times, she escaped with the aid of his guard...or at least those who were loyal."

She paused, and contemplated Kagome in silence.

"My lady has passed over the Inner River; my lady may walk the Stone Path, and the Green Path, and the Silver Path. My lady will surely be introduced during the Festival of the Bright Moon, will attend the feasts held in the Pavilion of Dark Nights and Harmony. Izayoi-hime could do none of these things without escort, and every moment of her guarded time brought another accusation of weakness against my lord's father."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words – but I lied. One more chapter of these two; then _really _it will be Sesshomaru's turn! Also...yaaaay! 150th chapter of Alpha!

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	151. Chapter 151

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLI

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Qi_

Yoko continued speaking with a frown on her face.

"Eventually, Izayoi-hime came not to leave these rooms; but when she came to be with child, and the scent of this could no longer be hidden, my lord's father sent her back to the house from which he had stolen her; a house that had given her up for dead, and which now found that instead, she was something they found far worse: a demon's woman, a defiled Princess – and worse, carrying a demon child.

"Only the appearance of my lord's father, the greatness of his _Qi_ and his wrath, protected the life of Izayoi-hime and her unborn babe...but after that, I no longer saw her. I cannot say what it was that happened to her; I cannot say how she lived her life, though certainly, being human, her time has ended by now."

Kagome frowned.

"Inuyasha - her son, that is – told me once that she was dead. The way he said it made me think that...that she died when he was very young. That there was something...unnatural about it. But then, humans die all the time, from sickness and famine and war...and it sounds like she had many enemies."

Yoko nodded.

"My lady is correct."

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><p>AN: 200 words – now, onward to Sesshomaru and his Council!

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	152. Chapter 152

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLII

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Lob_

While Kagome spoke with Yoko, Sesshomaru sat in Council, waiting.

The Council room was dark; the moonlight through the windows was pale and thin, the fire on the hearth low, and Sesshomaru had lit neither lamps nor candles. The eyes of his councilors, minus Shizuka, stared back at him across the table, and Sesshomaru did his best to reign in his impatience.

His eyes singled out Ryoichiro and his brother, who had brought him here.

"Did Shizuka give you a reason for his..._urgency_, when he told you to summon me?"

Shizuka entered just at that moment, saving the Inu twins from the brunt of Sesshomaru's further _irritation. _

"I did not tell them, my lord. None but I have had a chance to read the _message_ you received; I did not think it wise to make the topic available for rumors by speaking in detail in the hallways."

Sesshomaru nodded once, and then gestured sharply at the empty seat.

"Give me that _thing_ and take your place.

With a small bow, Shizuka obeyed. Sesshomaru took the offensive piece of paper in his hand, and scanned it one final time before crumbling it into a ball and lobbing it into the fire.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words again...more in a moment! :D

Please Review!


	153. Chapter 153

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLIII

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Auspicious_

Shizuka stood up again very quickly, but it was already too late. The message was burning, the flames lighting on it eagerly; he watched the words curl and crisp and drop away as the paper turned to ashes. Under Sesshomaru's heavy gaze he resumed his seat, and listened to words that were equally heavy.

"The note that is burning came from my mother. It has been more than two centuries since I allowed her onto this island, but I no longer have a choice in the matter. The formal ceremony of acceptance, the claiming of title that Kagome must perform...it cannot happen without her here. She knows this, though I do not know how she discovered -"

Shizuka interrupted carefully.

"My lord, if I may – your mother would know the instant you bonded with your mate; the instance your claim took precedence upon her. She was the Lady of the West, and now she is not. At that moment, she lost all the accoutrements dependent solely on that title and position, and they became the property and responsibility of Kagome-sama."

He met Sesshomaru's eyes.

"Not, perhaps, the most auspicious turn of events...but unavoidable."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! Now, lest we have forgotten, keep in mind the message Sesshomaru received after dinner, which he then proceeded to distract himself from by...ah...keeping Kagome "company". Bwaha. Onward!

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	154. Chapter 154

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLIV

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Solanine_

The thought of Sesshomaru's mother wound through the room like the acrid tendrils of some solanine poison's scent, green and rotten. Each of the youkai in the room was more than aware of the terrible tension between mother and son; all of them had been first hand witnesses to it. They knew her politics, her preferences...her _pastimes_.

It was Musashi who put the glaring problem into words.

"Sesshomaru-dono...my Lord, your mother will kill your mate – or die trying. A _human_, as Lady of the West? She will _never_ stand for it."

Sesshomaru didn't even blink.

"I know this. When she tries something, I will be ready. But I have had thoughts, and I wonder – what is it that she must do that is so..._immediate_?"

He eyed each of his councilors until he came to Shizuka, who had been prepared for this question.

"My lord, there is no such need. The transference of title, the recognition of the lands and barriers...this is a thing of power, not of will. The formal investiture may take place at any time; tradition binds this to the claiming ceremony, but -"

"Tradition is not law - only precedent."

* * *

><p>AN: Hmm...I just drabbled through the whole night and now it's five am. How strange that seems...eh. Onward again!

Please Review!


	155. Chapter 155

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLV

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Belladonna_

Sesshomaru waited silently for the first protesting comment. To his surprise, there were none. Only Yoshio spoke, and when he did his voice was firm.

"We stand with you, Sesshomaru-dono. Your mother – the one who named her must have had considerable foresight. She is as deadly as the _hashiridokoro _flower she was named for. Have you considered the plots she will likely have in motion by now, my Lord?"

Sesshomaru's smile was something to behold; terror lurked within it, waiting to be invoked.

"I have considered that Kagome is miko...and that this is something my mother does not know."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words this time...and yes, this chapter means that Inumama's name is Hashiridokoro – the Japanese word for Japanese Belladonna, the flowering S. japonica.

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	156. Chapter 156

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLVI

Prompt From IDDN 1/2/12

_Anamnesis_

Curious, even Shizuka looked up at _those _words.

_Fighting words._

"My lord, are you sure...that this is the best way to approach this situation?"

Sesshomaru tapped a single claw idly on the table.

"You would have me believe there is some _other_ way, Shizuka? Everyone in this room knows what my mother will do when she finds out that my mate is human. I can prevent this for now; I can protect her until the claiming ceremony is complete – my mother does not need to be here for that. But after? Some guest will carry rumors and truths away from the island, and then it will no longer matter."

Sesshomaru met Shizuka's gaze with a burning stare.

"I will _not _make the mistakes my father made; do you understand? No one must think that she cannot take care of herself; she _must_ defend _herself. _The use of her power, the manipulation of her miko strength – it must become unconscious to her, part of her every moment. Danger must become a disease that she fights constantly; she has been exposed to such a way of life before. She will adjust – she will be _stronger_, now."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words again, and thus... the last chapter of the night (or ridiculously early morning) is posted! I think. At least, this is the last one from IDDN, and no others are_ finished_ right now...I suppose it depends if breakfast puts me to sleep or wakes me up. This chapter is dedicated to Wiccan, 'cause her reviews are BAMF Spoinky and other kinds of awesome :D

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	157. Chapter 157

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLVII

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Edge_

Sesshomaru's tone of voice inspired questions in all those who had not yet met Kagome. The brothers had seen her power in a moment of utter release; Shizuka had been witness to something similar, if not as great.

The others could only wonder about strength so great that Sesshomaru based his defiance on it in the face of his mother's considerable ire.

"My lord, have you considered that...it might be best to _allow_ your mother to – rid you of this...burden?"

For a flickering instant, youki swarmed toward the edge of Sesshomaru's control and weighed down the shadows with dark promise.

* * *

><p>AN: So, the power of yet another DDn...100 words, and continuing onwards!

Please Review!


	158. Chapter 158

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLVIII

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Escape_

Yoshio held Sesshomaru's gaze for only a moment before he took the only escape available to him: he closed his eyes, and sat very still. He had taken a risk in saying so much when Sesshomaru had already made his intentions clear: to keep this woman, however unwillingly she had come into his grasp; to bring her forward as his mate and give her the position at his side that she...deserved.

Sesshomaru spoke quietly.

"If I did not think you spoke with my best interest in your thoughts, I would kill you. Even _you_, Yoshio. Do not mistake me in this."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words again, and onward...I think shortly we'll be checking in with Inuyasha again.

Please Review!


	159. Chapter 159

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLIX

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Soul_

In the silence that followed his pronouncement, Sesshomaru stared across the table at each of his councilors individually, seeking a true reaction in more than their scent. He wanted the open book of their thoughts, the live wire of their souls.

In all of them he saw wariness, and in Yoshio a trembling that approached fear; only in Shizuka did he encounter the acceptance he was looking for.

The danger was greater than he had thought if even these few whom he had relied on were unsettled; was there anyone but Shizuka he could trust to aid him with the truth?

* * *

><p>AN: The power of Pomegranate Lemonade! Onward!

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	160. Chapter 160

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLX

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Fusion_

_What will happen when my mother comes, with all her plots and politics? Will my own Council...will even these assist in my destruction? _

Sesshomaru stared ahead blankly for a moment, seeing nothing and seeing everything; the present moment had passed out of his sight, and instead he saw superimposed a vision of the future – his mother walking through the doors to the Council chamber, her robes spattered in blood, his councilors kneeling before her...

And then he shook his head, and scowled darkly, dispelling the fusion of foresight and faithless dreams.

Nothing like that would happen.

_No harm will come to Kagome._

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...damn straight, S'homaru! No harm comes to Kagome...or does it? Does Sesshomaru legitimately see something of the future...or do his fears haunt him? Dun dun dun...only I know, and I ain't talkin'! Now...depending on the prompt, back to Inuyasha!

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	161. Chapter 161

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXI

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Eclipse_

In the darkness of nowhere, Inuyasha waited, watching the blackness that had eclipsed all sound, all motion. For a while, he replayed the things he had learned in his thoughts; then he grew bored...irritated...angry...and once again bored.

When a voice finally came, it was one newly familiar; his father's voice. The recent memory of the time he had been forced to spend in the company of Naraku darted forward in Inuyasha's thoughts, but he restrained himself from shouting out in anger even as his _lesson_ continued.

"There is something beyond fear that you share with your brother, my son."

* * *

><p>AN: Another 100 words...and still onward...

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	162. Chapter 162

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXII

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Accent_

Inuyasha pushed himself to his feet, and turned to face the source of his father's voice. The Inu no Taisho was a wavering image that did not grow quite solid.

"Here to shove me off on another _adventure_, old man?"

"Yes...and no."

Inuyasha barely restrained himself from sneering.

"Yes and no? Can't you _ever_ give a straight answer?"

His father let out a long sigh.

"I am _trying_ to do so, Inuyasha. But you – my son, what is it you are holding against me?"

Inuyasha stared at him wide-eyed, and then let out a single, convulsive sob, a mere accent to his shouted accusation.

"You died! You died and left us alone -"

"But I cannot make your pain less by explanations, or by apologies. I died so you could live; I died and -"

"And everything changed after that! Everything went wrong!"

This time, the Inu no Taisho shook his head.

"No, Inuyasha. It was long before that...that everything went wrong."

And he turned sharply, and gestured for Inuyasha to follow him into the blackness.

"Walk with me, my son. And watch. I will show you...my own memory this time."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words this time, just because I felt like it :p The next prompt is in five minutes..so...onward!

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	163. Chapter 163

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXIII

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Cube_

With a _snap _and a flicker, color and sound returned to the void around Inuyasha. His father led him forward through the confines of his ancient fortress, past squadrons of youkai arranged in square formations.

In front of them all stood the Inu no Taisho, confronted by his elder son, and Inuyasha watched as the two of them faced off against each other, almost identical in expression - an expression Inuyasha knew from long experience.

His father stood by his memory-self, and pierced Inuyasha with dark eyes.

"In this moment, I took the first step toward making a rival of my son."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...but...seriously...cube? What an annoying prompt! But anyways...onward...again. Next chapter...a special surprise. Bwaha.

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	164. Chapter 164

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXIV

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_History_

Inuyasha walked forward, until he was standing only a step away from his brother, and then leaned back in surprise when Sesshomaru spoke. Such _violence_ in his words – such fury!

"You return, _father_ – and with an army at your heels. Did you not think to inform me you intended to bring so many youkai to this place?"

"I rule here, Sesshomaru! Have you forgotten? I do not require the permission of my _son_ before I -"

Sesshomaru did not let him finish.

"_You_ rule here? In name, you may be the Lord of the West, but I have ruled these lands since the day I cast out my mother."

The silence of the youkai battalions ceased to be undisturbed unity, and became a fractious tension instead. The Inu no Taisho eyed his son, and then jerked his head sharply to the left.

"Walk with me, Sesshomaru."

The tone of his voice was dangerous, but Sesshomaru seemed not to notice. As he moved, Inuyasha moved with him, and the shade of their father walked beside.

"Your mother showed you the first time I returned to meet your brother; this is the second time, Inuyasha. Your brother moves swiftly towards his second century, and I had all but deserted him. I left him to do as he says – to rule – while I added layers of darkness to the rumor of my name."

He inclined his head towards the figure of Sesshomaru standing at a distance now with his former self.

"Listen, Inuyasha. Your brother has the right of it...though I would not admit that until I was dead."

Inuyasha jogged over to Sesshomaru, and caught the end of an icy rant.

"...while you _pleased_ yourself with battle in the South, there have been famines and wars. Human settlements grow like leprous blotches on the landscape!"

The Inu No Taisho looked shocked, and uneasy.

"Wars? Famine?"

Sesshomaru's blank mask finally cracked into a scowl of tremendous fury.

"You do not even know? You paid _no_ attention? For three seasons of harvest, rot spread through all the West, and into the North. Nekomata and their lords attacked in the winter, two years past, seeking food and flesh - of which there was none! Not even for our own people; even mother, my own mother, sent messengers requesting aid."

Sesshomaru paused, and drew a deep breath, swayed forward a bare inch.

"And now I know why those messages came to _me_, and not you. I hear you are a great general, father, that you lead the Youkai Army to many victories – but you are a terrible Lord! Those who are yours, you care nothing for! Only the new matters to you; new conquest, new territory, new weapons -"

"Enough!"

Inuyasha's eyes widened in surprise; he stared at the vision of his father's past in confusion. Rage, rough and open, was spread across the Inu no Taisho's face. More surprising still, Sesshomaru did not back down. He seemed almost...pleased, to have evoked such a reaction.

"You are barely more than a pup; you do not understand the importance -"

"I have fought _wars_ at your back! I have slain _hundreds_ because of this understanding you say I do not possess. Is this beyond your comprehension, _father_? Are you missing my point? For more than a hundred yearsI have ruled here in all but name! You left my life at my discretion – do you remember that, father? Our one experience of meeting; the single instance we were together before now?"

The rage had subsided in his father's face; replacing it was concern, and irritation.

"I should _never_ have allowed that! You have become – what have you become, Sesshomaru?"

His son stood tall, with glittering eyes.

"I have become the Lord of the West. I have become stronger. But still, I -"

And there was a pause, a moment of stunning silence when Inuyasha saw his brother's face contort, become a smile-that-was-not-a-smile.

"I have not found the straight way I was seeking; the path of supreme conquest. Fight me, father. Fight me – a real battle; a true test of power."

The Inu no Taisho laughed.

"Fight you? Why would I fight you, my own son? A match to first blood was one thing – but now you speak dangerously!"

"A fight without limits, father. Dangerously...that is only a single word, and I have lived through worse. No one is my match – no one challenges me – and still, I cannot reach the fullness of the strength I know is within me."

"No! You are a foolish pup still, if you think you are yet skilled enough to challenge me! I, I who have beaten youkai and holy men and kami alike – I, who hold the reins of the youkai army in my fist – I, the Inu no Taisho!"

As he spoke, he grew, and shifted, flesh and muscles rippling, changing; in a very few moments, Sesshomaru stood in the shadow of an enormous Inu, the true form of his father. A howl rent the sky in minor tones, left the air shivering.

It was a summons, a demand in the language of the Inu's darkness: _Run with me! Run with the night forget this foolishness, and run!_

At the sound of that call, Inuyasha saw Sesshomaru's power leaping in his veins, across his skin, a flicker of greengold lightning demanding freedom. It gave him a golden glow; skin and bone, his shape flowed. Like ice become fire, he stood suddenly revealed as the Inu. He was not even a quarter the size of his father's greatness - but his howl was just as strong and fluid.

The two Inu darted forward, wraith-shapes of silver that disappeared into the folded darkness of the night.

Inuyasha stood in silence beside the shade of his father, watching the distance dim and fade away into nothing.

* * *

><p>AN: Yahey! Surprise! This chapter is NOT from DDN...instead, it's 1000 words of fun! Dedicated to r0o who has been dying from teasing :p Better now? Onward!

Please Review!


	165. Chapter 165

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXV

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Element_

On the Inu no Taisho's face was regret, and longing, but the needs of the moment and Inuyasha's earthly flesh were hurrying him along now.

"Come, Inuyasha. We must move swiftly now. You have seen the mistakes I made with your brother; you know his life was built of pain and strife and no other element. These things I myself must tell you, show you; after, for good or evil you must depart from this place. Still – you and your brother both must learn to _trust_."

Inuyasha gaped at him for a moment, and then laughed – but it was not a pleasant sound.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 more words, catching up again oh my...onward, onward to the beat of the slave-driving DDN drum! More chapters tomorrow I expect; it seems to be working that way :p

Please Review!


	166. Chapter 166

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXVI

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Sonata_

"You're crazy, old man. Who've I ever had to trust? Who has _he _had?"

Inuyasha's father chuckled darkly at this proof that Inuyasha had, perhaps, learned a lesson.

"You have had trust, and lost it; so has your brother. Now the two of you must learn what it means to be full of fears that you will never lose. You must hold tight to those fears; each one is a thread of meaning. Carry my message to your brother, Inuyasha: to love is to fear, never forget that...but a life without love is like a sonata of silences."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words again...wow that got dramatic. One more prompt from DDN tonight, and then that's probably it...for now!

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	167. Chapter 167

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXVII

Prompt From DDN 1/7/12

_Encore_

For a moment, Inuyasha quailed at his father's pronouncement – but it was a moment without an encore.

"What's _love_ got to do with anything?"

His father shrugged.

"Nothing, perhaps. Only time can tell for certain, but I do know this - in the beginning, the feelings between your mother and I were not so different from the feelings you have for your Kagome. And these feelings...they are yet another thing you may share with your brother."

He paused, thoughtful.

"I would have given anything to save Izayoi; in the end I gave _everything_ to save her; but of course, even that was not enough."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words, and the last prompt of tonight's DDN. Now I'm going to set myself the goal of getting through enough plot that I can use next Saturday's GMDDN for more Alpha!smuts :D Otherwise I'll end up with random!smuts, and while those are good, they make me write a new fic, and that..I have enough fics right now :p

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	168. Chapter 168

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXVIII

Prompt From The Hatter Theory: A Word

_Seep_

The mention of his mother had Inuyasha's attention riveted to his father's words and to his face as he spoke.

"Izayoi was beautiful to me, beautiful in her frailty, her mortality, beautiful as her life seeped away; she was beautiful in her human inventiveness and her passionate futility. She was not strong, like your Kagome – she possessed no power – but I saw in her a light, and I was drawn to it inexorably, even against my will, it seemed sometimes. Your brother suffers now what I suffered then, but more strongly; you did that to him, Inuyasha."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...this chapter came from exactly where its says: I asked for a word in chat, and Hatter said "seep". So...ta da! A chapter :D

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	169. Chapter 169

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXIX

Prompt From Zandrellia: A Word

_Superfluous_

The Inu no Taisho fixed his son with a serious stare.

"You know what you did, Inuyasha. You bound Sesshomaru to the woman, and gave him power over her life and death; you tormented her for this, but it was your choice. This is the difference, Inuyasha – this is difference between what has happened to your brother and what happened to me. Your mother could not be my mate; I had already taken Hashiridokoro, your brother's mother, to be mine.

"I watched Izayoi for some time, before I decided that I had to have her; I waited, and chose my moment, and came to her finally when she was alone, observing some human custom of night-long watchfulness, playing idly with the stones by the side of a pond. She was overwhelmed, as I meant her to be; it was after I had kissed her that she finally realized I must be youkai, but still, she did not flee...and that doomed her, of course. They are always doomed, the humans that do not flee from us, and a woman, especially -"

He shrugged, an elegant flicker of shoulders. Inuyasha stared for a moment, seeing his brother in the movement, and then turned away.

* * *

><p>AN: And once again...200 words from a random word, this time from Zan! Yaay, a word! It became a prompt..and...the prompt became this chapter!

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	170. Chapter 170

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXX

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Columbine: Folly_

Inuyasha tried to get his thoughts in order as the world faded to life around them; the colors were soft and dark, and he knew that it was night. His father's words kept echoing in his mind; he was distracted by the promise of seeing his mother again, even if she wouldn't be aware of him, but his thoughts kept drifting back to painful truths that were slowly being revealed – truths about Sesshomaru...and Kagome.

_Mother...and Sesshomaru...and Kagome..._

It felt somehow like sacrilege to mix those things in his thoughts; he could not quite think of why.

"Come here, Inuyasha. And watch."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words, and that's chapter 170...I was on 138 a few days ago O.o No more tonight, I need sleep so I can get up and sing epiphany carols for old people...more tomorrow, perhaps! Send me a word, and you too can be a prompt!

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	171. Chapter 171

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXI

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Alpha_

Inuyasha stepped forward, drawn to the soft sounds of rustling silk. The world parted before him like mist, and showed him a woman – his mother, Izayoi-hime in her youth. She knelt by the side of water black as lacquer, reflecting the gem studded night, the lone _hime_ in her layers of robes., and the dragon's eye of the peering moon.

Inuyasha stopped walking when he was close enough to see her face, and studied his mother in the final moments of her _normal life_. She was thin and pale, fragile as a porcelain doll beneath the heavy robes and the dark length of her hair. Her eyes shifted between the glassy expanse of the lake's surface and night sky overhead; they were two images of one single thing – beauty multiplied, not divided.

She seemed to be drawing some comfort or inspiration from the landscape, and Inuyasha wondered what it was she was thinking; why she lingered alone outside, when the noises of games and conversation were loud and clear, riding on the light that trickled from the nearby pavilions.

Why did his mother alone linger in shadow? Was she already marked by some difference?

Then, out of the darkness, came the Inu no Taisho. At first, she did not notice him – but Inuyasha saw the moment when she did. Her eyes opened wide, taking in his presence, the ethereal, unearthly beauty that was youkai, the power that washed over the landscape as his gaze settled on her and he growled in approval. Inuyasha heard the sound as thunder and lightning both.

In that moment, she was chosen, though she did not know it; in that moment, she was picked to be a Queen, an Empress, the woman-who-was-wanted by the Inu no Taisho, Alpha of Alphas...Lord of the West.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! This is kind of funny – a prompt from GMDDN that was inspired by my fic, has now inspired my fic! :D Awesome! Onward to another prompt from said GMDDN, inspired by a different fic...which will still inspire this fic. Bwaha. DDN. Gotta love it. Oh. And since it _was_ GM...yeah. Smuts coming. Again. ::sigh:: :p

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	172. Chapter 172

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXII

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Darkness_

Quickly, Inuyasha walked forward and stood closer to his parents, watching their faces, listening to the words that finally came from his father.

"Little _hime_, what are you doing out alone on such an unlucky night?"

The answer that came from Izayoi was shy and quiet, but clear enough to youkai ears.

"It is only unlucky if one sleeps; did you not know, my lord? But I am unacquainted with you..."

The Inu no Taisho took two quick steps down the hill, and Inuyasha saw sudden fright on his mother's face, and then his father smiling to counter it. It made his face almost gentle, except for the cunning in his eyes...and the desire.

Inuyasha wondered that his mother did not see it and run – but instead she sat still, her face turned slightly away, peering at him through the curtain of her hair.

If she thought that alone would shield her from darkness -

And _such_ darkness.

"Lady, I must admit that I do not know your name...just as you do not know mine. But I know beauty when I see it; I _desire_ beauty when I see it. What is it _you_ desire, lovely princess?"

Inuyasha stood unmoving as the shade of his father came close to him and lay a translucent hand on his shoulder, watching his past self and the woman he had died for.

Izayoi, tempted, could not help but answer; it was an answer that would consume her- her life, her heart, her spirit...her very flesh.

"I want – to _be_. To live something beyond the confines of this life...this world..."

The smile that overtook the Inu no Taisho's face then was no longer gentle

"Little _hime_, I will give you that – and so much more..."

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words. At this point, you're probably wondering: Oh My God. It's going to be Inupapa smut? And I would have to say...yes. Yes, it is. And we can't forget poor Inu is watching. I've tormented that poor puppy horribly...youkai may not think twice about public sex – but Inu's half human, and he's not going to be happy...

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	173. Chapter 173

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXIII

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Forced Submission_

The Inu no Taisho stepped forward and drew her passionately against his body, lifting her almost off the ground with the intensity of his kiss. Her eyes went wide and she gasped against his mouth, but she didn't fight him – not at first.

She _knew_ he was youkai; Inuyasha, even closer now, could see it on her face, even as her eyes closed in enjoyment of his father's kiss. He wondered why it was that that single truth had not sent her running; he thought about the truth she had revealed to his father: "_I want...to be. To live more than this life..."_

And then Inuyasha saw that his mother had begun to struggle; that his father's hands were carefully, calmly, quickly untying the layers of her robes and pushing them aside. Her soft protests were useless; even her tears had no effect.

Embarrassed, ashamed, but riveted to the spot, Inuyasha watched as his father exposed the pale, soft flesh of his mother's body to the moonlight, and bent to take a nipple into his mouth. One hand found the nipple of her other breast, and pinched it gently, plied it back and forth between smooth fingers.

When Izayoi gasped, and the scent of her arousal sparkled in the air, the Inu no Taisho exerted a tiny portion of his great strength, and lifted her, holding her up by her hips. His tongue reached out and slipped between the dark folds of her sex.

Izayoi let out a little cry, and curved back in his hands, a pale crescent moon against the starry night. Unable to move, to avert his eyes, Inuyasha watched as father forced his mother's submission, taunting her with words and with pleasure, teasing her with a climax that would come only at his whim.

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><p>AN: 300 words. And all I can say is: Now We Know (where Sesshomaru gets it from) Bwahahahaha...more..almost immediately. While I contemplate whether or not to post the depraved chapter.

Please Review!


	174. Chapter 174

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXIV

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Discoveries_

The drive for the orgasm that finally wrenched Izayoi's body was the flicker of that Inu tongue against her most sensitive nerves, and then deep inside her. It seemed to wake in her the premonition of other, deeper pleasures; suddenly instead of bending away from her youkai lover, her conquerer, she was bending toward him, her hands reaching down, the crescent shape of her body reversed.

Her writhing did not shake the Inu no Taisho's hold on her; he held her tightly, until she was through shaking – and then held her away from him with one hand, so he could undo the ties of his own clothes.

He eased his hold only enough to slide her down his body, so she could feel his erection press against the wet, sensitive flesh at her core.

"Ahh – ah – ah-"

The sounds escaped Izayoi beyond her control, breathless little mutterings of pleasure and desire. She knew what he was about to do; she had made so many pleasurable discoveries at his hands that in that moment, her desire was complete. It showed on her face.

He pressed up, just a little – and Izayoi pushed herself down, taking the hard shaft deep inside her.

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><p>AN: 200 words. Coming up next: a depraved, incestuous chapter in which Inuyasha is tormented with shame, horror, and his father's amusement at how lame he is. Don't blame me – blame Everyone In GMDDN Who Cheered Me On. :p

Please Review!


	175. Chapter 175

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXV

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Depravity_

A foot away from his parents – perhaps less- Inuyasha stood, and trembled. He was full of desire, and he _hated_ himself for it. Was he some kind of depraved beast, to stand here so full ofwant, staring at his mother – at his father, at their straining, panting bodies?

He felt an erection pressing tightly against the fabric of his hakama, and tried to look away – but the only place he could look was the knowing eyes of his father's shade behind him.

"She is a beautiful woman, is she not?"

The Inu no Taisho seemed quite pleased with the image of his living self, rutting with his chosen woman. Inuyasha ground out words through shame and desire.

"She's – my_ mother_!"

"And a beautiful woman. I _know_ you see this, Inuyasha."

The translucence of his father's hand reached out and grasped the hard length of his erection through his hakama. The hand squeezed, and then jerked roughly, once, twice. A long, terrible moan ripped itself out of Inuyasha's throat; his erection pulsed in time with the movements in front of him, his eyes locked on the shameful scene. Inuyasha spasmed uncontrollably, brought suddenly to the brink of his pleasure. The sight was forbidden – and arousing; the stimulation of his father's hand was teasing, totally unwanted, meant to embarrass him, not do _this – __but _-

_Depraved. _

_Beast._

His thoughts whispered at him, but it did no good – did not stop the hot burn in his heavy sac from becoming a wet spurt of shame.

Inuyasha stared in horror; his father only laughed.

"You need that woman more than I thought, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha stood very, very still, his eyes wide, his breath heavy, his face flushed with dark, dark, loathing.

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><p>AN: 300 words. I wrote that. Yup. Expect fall out over the next three chapters as Inuyasha's self-loathing rises to new levels and his father realizes some of the implications of having a son who is half _human_

Please Review (if I haven't scared you away)!


	176. Chapter 176

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXVI

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Collared_

Inuyasha's loathing was directed both at himself and at his father, who had tormented him this way.

The problem was that his father did not understand what he had done. Casual sex, even in front of one's family, was not something youkai avoided or were ashamed of, and the Inu no Taisho had only thought to make clear to his son how his relationship with Izayoi had begun.

He did not know that his son, raised by his own wildness and what he could glean from human society, couldn't dream of such a thing; that the act which the Inu no Taisho dismissed as merely embarrassing was for Inuyasha a repugnant and shameful thing.

Still, Inuyasha was compelled to watch; he could not escape the visions, could not flee from the figures that still thrust against each other, releasing gasps and moans of pleasure.

After a time, there was quiet, and Inuyasha could finally look away – away from his father, away from his parents panting on the ground. His features had quieted from angry shame to dull resentment; his gaze wandered the dark landscape.

He caught sight of a figure approaching from the distance at great speed, and his eyes went wide. For a moment, he forgot all his recent shame in his surprise.

_That's...Sesshomaru's mother!_

She came on them quickly and stopped to stare, sneering, taking in the sight of the naked woman on her knees.

"Filth! Whore! How _dare_ you-"

The Inu no Taisho lunged at her before she could finish speaking, collaring her in one swift movement as her hands moved, threatening his woman. He held her still, one hand at her throat, the other holding her wrists. Then he grabbed the rich robes she wore, and tore them methodically from her body, until she was as naked as Izayoi.

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><p>AN: 300 words...could anything else possibly go wrong at this point? Or...make this more awkward? :P Find out in Chapter 177: Kinky Boots. Coming Soon :D

Please Review!


	177. Chapter 177

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXVII

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Kinky Boots_

"Look well, little _hime_, upon this female who scorns you. Her name is Hashiridokoro, and she was chosen for my mate. She is jealous of you, though she claims you are worthless; she desires your charms, your mortal freshness – she wants to _be_ you, even as she strikes at you with her words."

And then, with a wicked smirk, he turned to look down at his _mate_ with burning eyes. Inuyasha's attention was drawn unwillingly upward, to the gleam of darkness and dismissal in his father's eyes.

"Did you think I did not know you, Hashiridokoro? Did you think I had no clue as to your intentions or your desires; did you think I did not know you had been spying on my from afar, watching distrustfully all my movements, all my _entanglements_ with this new mortal presence on my lands? You are a fool, if you imagined for even a moment that I was not aware!"

And then, as fury danced in vain across her face, he smiled at her – a terrible smile, and pulled her up onto her toes. Blood ran down the sides of her throat where his claws had pricked through her skin; he pinched one of her nipples cruelly between his finger and thumb, and then reached out quick as lightning to grab her hands when she attempted to strike at him.

He felt her hands twitching his grasp. If he gave her a chance, she would hurt him...or try.

So he would not give her a chance.

Inuyasha shuddered, watching the new expression that flickered across his father's face – and then watched, wide-eyed, as the Inu no Taisho bent, and unlaced the long leather thong from each of his boots.

Then he tied her tightly, winding the leather around her arms until it had been bound past her elbows.

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><p>AN: 300 words...bwahahaha. Doom comes for Sesshomaru's mother – shall we see why she doesn't like humans...or her mate...or her son...or...well...anyone, much?

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	178. Chapter 178

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXVIII

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Trapped_

"Release me! Release me _now -_"

"No. You will display yourself for my new woman. Turn!"

Inuyasha saw horror and fury stream across the face of Sesshomaru's mother in equal portions – but he knew that she was too cunning, too vengeful, to deny his father and waste her life. The Inu no Taisho had trapped her well, and to his benefit – though Inuyasha found himself unable to pity her too much. The things she had said about his mother chafed, and he knew that whatever his troubles with his brother, half of them could be laid at her door.

She had made Sesshomaru the person he was.

Still, Inuyasha was more than a little surprised. He had heard stories of his father from his mother; not many, true – but some. She had never mentioned his cruelty, never said anything about this night she had met him.

If _this_ was the Inu no Taisho...then perhaps...perhaps it was good that his father had died before he had ever come to know him.

He watched Sesshomaru's mother twisting lasciviously in his father's grasp, her eyes boring into Izayoi's. Inuyasha watched his mother lower her gaze and blush intensely, suddenly reaching for her robes, feeling exposed under this new demon's gaze though the Inu no Taisho's intentions had been the opposite.

The noises from the human halls behind them faded away; even the humming of lake shore crickets and the whisper of the wind's wandering grew dim and quiet. His father's voice came from behind Inuyasha, sinking deep into his thoughts.

"It all began here, Inuyasha. With the humiliation of Hashiridokoro, with the claim I staked on your mother..."

These frozen images of the past did not please his father, Inuyasha saw; instead, he seemed distressed.

_Regretful_.

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><p>AN: 300 words! Inuyasha thinking, who'd have guessed...and onward! There are only two or three more chapters of Inuyasha, and then he'll be back in the waking world and we'll be back to Kagome - who has some things to come to terms with herself.

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	179. Chapter 179

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXIX

Prompt From GMDDN 1/14/11

_Seekers_

Inuyasha knew better than anyone else that _regret_ was not enough; that by itself, it was worth less than nothing. The Inu no Taisho seemed to know what his son was thinking – or at the very least his words reflected as much.

"That night, the webs of fate drew close and tight about me. I stood tall, thinking myself the conquerer; I did not know that each step I took was deeper into the pit, deeper into darkness. I was foolish, and proud, sure of my might...and even If I had known what awaited me – I was always a seeker after danger. Much like you, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha scowled, jerked viciously away from his father's hand when it came to rest on his shoulder.

"_Don't _touch me."

The fingers lifted, almost apologetically; his father continued speaking, but in a softer tone.

"I have shamed you, my son. It was not my intention; I forget that you are...not youkai."

There was a shrug in his voice that infuriated Inuyasha.

"What kind of fucked up apology is that?"

His voice was a dark hiss.

"I'm sorry I'm not good enough for you, old man, but _you're_ the one who picked my mother. You should've thought about what that was going to get you! _Youkai – _you're all the same!"

The Inu no Taisho actually flinched – and then stood tall, imperious, and glared down at his son.

"Do not dare belittle the strength I gave you, the strength that has kept you alive for a hundred years! Your own choices have faulted you, as much as mine have; do not forget that the only demon that whispered darkness into your heart recently was your own! A demon of jealousy and pain, a demon that imperils your soul!"

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><p>AN: 300 words...and now we are coming to the crux of the matter, "where all dark and unhappy truths come to meet and mingle..." Onward!

Please Review!


	180. Chapter 180

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Warning_

The Inu no Taisho leaned forward and bent close to Inuyasha's ears.

"It is not the demon of my blood that boils within you, Inuyasha. It is _envy_; for even now, knowing what you know, you still desire your brother's place. Your whole life you have sought to emulate him...and then to destroy what you could not have. Remember, you are not the only one that has suffered from my mistakes."

Then he leaned back, and gestured sharply. The world flickered away from them, and then returned; they stood in a long hall, full of the sound of weeping.

"Your mother's house, Inuyasha. For a year after the night you witnessed, I returned to this place frequently, seeking her out, enamored of her – and not only of her body's pleasures, as you might think."

There was a strange expression on his father's face as he stepped forward, but Inuyasha ignored it in favor of perusing the rooms around them. All the furnishings were fine, but everything was draped in dark silk and the odor of dark incense was strong.

"Did...someone die?"

"Yes – and no. This is the funeral that was held for your mother after she disappeared. When no request for ransom or marriage came, her parents gave her up for dead. At the time, I was...pleased. I thought it meant I would face no challenge for her affection."

He shrugged, and Inuyasha saw a long procession of mournful humans coming toward them. The line began with an older pair who walked very slowly, supporting each other. The woman's sobs were audible to Inuyasha even at such a distance; then the world wavered out of existence as the memory faded.

He blinked, wondering – were those the human grandparents he had never met?

But in another moment, they had returned to a place that Inuyasha recognized: the fortress of the West, as imposing in the full light of a summer's day as it had been in darkness.

His father resumed a swift pace across the new landscape, and in a casual and offhand way Inuyasha received a tour of the place that should have been his home. The Inu no Taisho brought Inuyasha to the place Sesshomaru had brought Kagome: to the main hall of the Lower House, where Izayoi had resided.

Her scent was clear to Inuyasha, and he watched his father moving restlessly from room to room, shooing youkai from various places, leaving each chamber empty behind him. At the end of a narrow gallery he stepped through an open _shoji_,and approached a carriage that waited outside with a single occupant.

"Come out, little _hime_, come out."

Izayoi exited the carriage and took four steps toward the gallery, her hand in his father's hand, her face hidden behind the black curtain of her hair, her eyes peeking between the strands like brilliant stars.

"And this is your home, my love?"

Her words were almost a whisper, but she regarded Inuyasha's father fondly, without fear, and Inuyasha found himself wondering what miracle, what _magic_, had made her capable of disregarding her first experience with the Inu no Taisho. Then he heard his father speak, and his eyes went wide.

"It is. And it is _your_ home now too, little _hime_. But come – see the rooms I have prepared for you, and tell me if they are fitting, and beautiful enough to serve you."

That voice – so _warm_! Inuyasha could _hear_ love in his father's voice, and it was a shocking contrast. Beside him, the shade of the Inu no Taisho laughed gently; Inuyasha whipped around, and saw that the expression on his face was the same as it had been in the past, tempered only by longing.

Then the scene shifted, broke, and reassembled. Izayoi stood in a garden, green leaves above her, blue sea behind. She looked thoughtful, distracted, and it was obvious that the sudden appearance of Sesshomaru behind her startled her.

Inuyasha looked back over his shoulder at his father, and saw a grim expression on his face.

"Father, what - ?"

"Watch."

Scowling, Inuyasha turned back. Sesshomaru stood five paces away from his mother, contemplating her. Encouraged, perhaps, by his silence and by his resemblance to the Inu no Taisho, Izayoi tried a friendly greeting.

"_Ohayo gozaimasu_, Inu-sama; forgive my distraction, I did not notice your presence. But you...you look much like my love – you must be his son Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru stared at her, unblinking, and spoke inflectionless words

"So. You are the woman who wounds my father."

Izayoi's eyes went wide with indignation; she drew herself up tall.

"How rude – how awful – how untrue! I would _never_ hurt your father – I love him!"

Sesshomaru bared his teeth at her, and moved three steps closer. Inuyasha followed, surprised by the real hate in Sesshomaru's voice – by the _intensity _of it.

"Of course you will hurt him! You are _human_; if nothing else, you will die. There is _nothing_ you can do about it; he is already mated to my mother.. Your very presence has ripped his reputation to threads already – weak, worthless woman!"

Izayoi appeared much taken aback by this statement, and Inuyasha stared at her, wondering.

_Did she know what that meant? Did she understand _mate_? Did she understand that weakness was a death sentence, real or perceived?_

Her answer told him nothing but the pain that his brother's words had caused her.

"You are cruel, Sesshomaru...even if you are only truthful."

Inuyasha blinked disbelievingly and took another step forward, but the scene went dim, and then black. When the world returned, the _shiro_ had moved forward around them; they were back in one of the rooms they had passed earlier in the Lower House, and Inuyasha looked across at his mother, sitting at a desk, inking characters into a soft, flat book.

The Inu no Taisho spoke quietly from behind him.

"Your mother, newly pregnant with you, Inuyasha. On this day, she intended to tell me she carried my child, thinking I did not know. _She_ did not know that nearly every day, an assassin sought to find a way into her room. No one spoke of it to her, because she was human – but every youkai on the island knew of her _condition_ long before she did, and their intention was that she suffer for it."

Inuyasha stepped further into the room, and watched his mother's smile grow as his father came to her side. The shade of the Inu no Taisho behind Inuyasha stayed close, but quiet, letting this moment play out before his son's eyes.

"My love, you have need of me?"

The Inu no Taisho's face softened imperceptibly.

"It you who has need of _me, _precious_ hime_. I have tried to keep you safe, to keep the darkness of this place away from you, but I do not think I will succeed. If I leave you unprotected, you are vulnerable; there is no one I can trust with your safety – not even my own son."

His lips tightened as he said this, and Inuyasha's ears pricked to the words.

"My love..."

His next words obviously surprised her.

"I should say my elder son, shouldn't I?"

He reached out and lay a hand on her belly, which had not yet swollen to show her pregnancy.

"You – you knew?"

He laughed, a low rumble, and tapped his nose with one finger.

"Of course; did you forget? I am Inu, little _hime_."

She flushed, and Inuyasha was surprised by the tension in her face, the sudden tightness of her shoulders.

"You are not – angry with me?"

The Inu no Taisho seemed surprised.

"Angry? No! You did not cause this to happen, dangerous though it may be for you."

And then he drew himself up to his full height, and gestured at the room around her.

"Gather together the things you would bring with you, Izayoi, and prepare for a journey. Until our son is born, I am sending you back to your family. Death does not lurk in every shadow there."

Inuyasha saw his mother begin to smile, and then the world wavered before him again. In a moment the scene had shifted and they were once more standing at the lakeside, staring at the palace Izayoi had grown up in...only this time, it was burning.

Inuyasha moved instinctively toward the blaze, but his father's hand was on his arm almost immediately, holding him back.

"Be still, my son. This is the day you were born - the day _I_ died."

The flames reflected red in Inuyasha's eyes; he stared, watching, as the _shiro_ collapsed in a scream of flame and power – his father's power. He saw his mother flee, carrying the red-wrapped bundle of his infant self in her arms...and followed her.

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><p>AN: 1500 words! Sorry for the wait, but I've had no internet 'cause I'm waiting for my new service to be hooked up and that won't be until 2/7, sadly. Lack of internet = lack of ability to update, except at my grandma's house...and also lack of ability to consult with Lilli who is my super awesome plot help genius :D Thus, I dedicate this chapter unto her, who helped me fix the plot of this chapter in like...ten magic minutes. Suuupaaaah! Go Numbah One! :D One more chapter of Inuyasha, and then it's back to everyone's favorite pair.

Please Review!


	181. Chapter 181

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXI

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Fortune_

At the edge of the encircling forest, Izayoi stopped and turned back. Her body trembled and shivered, but Inuyasha saw that it was with sobs, not cold – that it was probable she hadn't noticed the snow around her, or her bleeding feet, or the ashes falling thick as a grey blizzard.

What she did notice, finally, was the dark and deadly presence behind her. Inuyasha started as his brother seemed to materialize from between the trees, his face hard and furious.

"I told you that you would hurt my father, woman, but even _I_ did not think you would _kill_ him."

And for a moment, the icy facade cracked, and tore, and showed her Hell.

"I hate you. I _hate_ you. _Both_ of you."

And as she cowered, protecting Inuyasha, protecting the evidence, the _proof_, of the relationship that had destroyed his father, Sesshomaru snarled and struck her once, sent her flying -

And then turned away, and vanished into the wood.

For the last time, the world dissolved around Inuyasha and became blackness, blank and empty. He stood still, trembling, fighting a welling of tears that he hadn't even known was possible. He was wrestling with these revelations, and those that had come previous; wrestling with his own nature, of which half seemed to understand without effort the things his father had said and done. The Inu within him, diminished as it was, did not question. His instincts knew what it was to keep a mate in check, to discipline an offspring, to teach an object lesson.

It was his human heart that stilled him, the heart of his mother's inheritance and teachings. It whispered to him of morality, of the treason of his feelings, of the _wrongness_ of the youkai way. It had been so his entire life. The sight of his mother's house in flames – the swelling of his father's power and then its dissolution – his mother's agony and distress – Sesshomaru's cruelty and utter _rightness_ -

Those things on top of what had come before was too much, just _too much -_

Inuyasha threw back his head, and howled, and screamed, and cried – and fell to his knees, broken and repentant and as anguished as he had ever been.

If he was hoping for comfort, he was not to be appeased.

"I am sorry, my son, but that is all I have to give you. Take these lessons to heart; do not lose them in living, but strengthen them with experience, with intelligence...with feeling. I do not think you will regain the woman of your desire – not this time. But hope still, Inuyasha, for happiness of your own!"

Inuyasha looked up abruptly, wiping nose and eyes on his sleeve.

"There is only one last piece of advice I can reinforce for you – one thing, that applies to you and your brother equally. You must learn _trust_ Inuyasha, you must learn before this lack destroys you. Do not make my mistakes, or you will pay the price I paid – or worse."

Even as he spoke, the Inu no Taisho began to fade away, becoming more transparent with each passing moment. Faced with the loss of his father for a second time, Inuyasha threw away his earlier thoughts and pled for the chance he had never had.

"Father – father, wait! I changed my mind! I _do _want to know you - don't send me back yet!"

He heard a faint echo, as of laughter – and then words, fainter still.

"But it is not yet your time to die, my son..."

Darkness pulsed in time with his father's words, and then passed into utter nothingness. Time passed, or perhaps it didn't - and then...there came a change. There was blinding brightness, gold-beyond-gold, light-beyond-light.

Inuyasha could feel it, _see_ it. This was the same power he had met in a memory in the wood at night when Sesshomaru was _training_. This was the power that had trapped him, power that had held even his spirit still -

And then he took a deep breath, and choked on pain; the pains of flesh. He felt the wounds Sesshomaru had inflicted sharply; the agony had hard edges and sharp corners that pressed into his awareness.

He had been returned to his body. He was alive. It was dark, but only the dark of night, bright with moon and stars. He felt his heart beating, pushing the blood through his veins; he tasted the thick scents of the forest night – trees and beasts and flowing water, night-blooming flowers and the languor of sleep.

He let out a sharp breath.

"I'm – alive –"

Without warning, he found himself sobbing; he knew, and he did _not_ know, why.

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><p>AN: 800 words! And so, Inuyasha returns to the world of the living...and hopefully he has learned something, or I wasted a LOT of chapters! We return next chapter to Kagome and Sesshomaru, who have their own learning to do – some apart, and some together...this chapter is dedicated to my grandma, (even though she'll never read it) because she lets me use her internet. Go Grandmas! Woot! :D

Please Review!


	182. Chapter 182

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Wind_

After much discussion, Sesshomaru and his council came to three conclusions they felt could not be disputed. His mother's presence was unavoidable, however long they managed to delay it. Once she arrived, violence was certain; she would do her best to destroy Kagome.

An introduction for Kagome was also unavoidable; however much Sesshomaru – and Kagome herself – might want to avoid them, the Lady of the West had duties that could not be abandoned. She would _have_ to be presented to the court – and the sooner, the better. Only then could she even try to build alliances of her own.

Finally, there was the matter of Kagome herself. Though all six of his councilors agreed that Kagome was in considerable danger simply because she was human, Sesshomaru refused to bend an inch in his insistence that she protect herself. Only Shizuka was able to offer an objection that carried any weight.

"My lord, there is still the fact that as a human, she will sleep every night without fail. Her power is great, indeed, but will it keep her safe while she is unconscious and unaware? Even youkai may be taken while they are so vulnerable; not all can wake quickly enough to prevent disaster."

Sesshomaru glowered momentarily and then relaxed.

"I think that you underestimate her, Shizuka – but even so, I had never intended to leave her alone while she slept. Yoko and any other females who she comes to trust will remain with her through the night; this is common, and will not be remarked upon. Indeed, to leave her alone would be more conspicuous...and a greater vulnerability."

Musashi blinked and scrunched his brow quizzically.

"My lord?"

Sesshomaru growled impatiently.

"You do not see? If she has no companion but me, what does that say of her? No lady lives without females around her, not as guardians but as _companions_ - for entertainment, for gossip, for spying and plotting – for weaving the damned and lovely webs that are court life."

Finally, even Musashi was nodding his agreement, and Sesshomaru sat back, concealing a sigh. The silence stretched for several minutes, and then was broken by Akihito.

"My lord, concerning this matter of your mother..."

Sesshomaru regarded him with slitted eyes, and Akihito hurried his words.

"Perhaps it would be best if she were to arrive _before _you present your mate to the court."

Sesshomaru's answer was sharp, peremptory.

"Explain."

"Consider, my lord – if your mate is confirmed in her place as Lady of the West, her position will be stronger, openly unassailable. Without the formal investiture and your mother's consent, the reality of the titles that belong to your mate are...hazy at best. With them, however..."

But Sesshomaru was already shaking his head.

"We have already discussed how _likely_ it is that my mother will consent, Akihito."

"Well – if it turns out that battle is the way of it, then the death of your mother at the hands of your mate will still be support for her position; it will just be...a different kind."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened briefly.

"You are bold, Akihito...but not overly so. You speak truth, though it would please me more to take my mother's life myself. Still...perhaps it would be best to get this confrontation out of the way. I cannot delay telling Kagome for too long, and the longer she must wait after I tell her the more anxious she will become."

Shizuka leaned back in his chair and pressed her fingers together, tapping the claws of his forefingers thoughtfully.

"If you are intent on this, Sesshomaru-dono, then do _not_ wait. Send a message at once, summoning her here; and make sure that she knows it is a summons. The wording must be precise...enough to peak her interest, yet nothing overtly distressing...perhaps something along the lines of _'To circumvent rumor and for the prevention of gossip, I summon the former Lady of the West to stand as witness for the investiture of her successor, Kagome-dono,the Higurashi-hime, Honored Guardian...'_ etcetera..."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, bemused.

"You think quickly, Shizuka – but..._Honored Guardian_?"

The corners of Shizuka's eyes crinkled knowingly.

"My lord, if you wish your mother to come with the least fuss possible, you must insult her, interest her, and tempt her – all at once, and in that order. She is as changeable as the wind – this you can see in her every choice. Keep in mind, my lord... if you can convince her to aid your mate, your Kagome will have a powerful ally."

Sesshomaru smiled thinly.

"I see. Then tell her she must appear in one week's time."

He stood and stalked out of the room without further words.

* * *

><p>AN: 800 words! Sesshomaru's council meeting wraps itself up...I wonder where he's going next? Do you wonder too? Then..read the next chapter :D This chapter is dedicated to all the people who review but who I can't ever respond too because they have no name :( So sad, no name. Anyway...more chapters in a day or so when I can once again return to the internet!

Please Review!


	183. Chapter 183

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXIII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Surrender_

Sesshomaru walked through the long hallways with a predator's casual grace, peering past _shoji_ out of the corners of his eyes, judging expressions that snapped between fear and fury at his presence, conversations that slunk into silence at his approach – all except one.

Kagome's voice came to him clearly as he approached the Lady's Chambers in the South Wing. The topic of discussion made him stand momentarily still...and then approach slowly, his footsteps dim as death.

"_Inuyasha - her son, that is – told me once that she was dead. The way he said it made me think that...that she died when he was very young. That there was something...unnatural about it. But then, humans die all the time, from sickness and famine and war...and it sounds like she had many enemies._"

Sesshomaru heard Yoko's voice answering, much more quietly than Kagome's:

"_My lady is correct._"

Swiftly, he took six steps forward and opened the outer _shoji_, peered through at Kagome who sat with Yoko beside her, staring into a fire.

"Was it those enemies who killed her, Yoko?"

Sesshomaru watched the uncomfortable expression on Yoko's face become decisive instead.

"_Those_ enemies were defeated, my lady. I do not know what became of Izayoi-hime; the few who remember speak only of how broken the Inu no Taisho was at the end...of how terrible it was for the strongest of demons to die as he died - for love, for a mere woman; but he died in battle, and those who saw him before the end know what it was that truly killed him."

Kagome gestured quickly.

"Tell me, please! I've never heard any of this -"

That was enough for Sesshomaru; if she had questions, there would be answers, but he did _not_ want her to hear the words of his father's court come out of Yoko's mouth. With three swift steps he entered the room, and stood behind her.

"Then why did you not ask _me_, mate? If you were..._curious_."

A cold tingle shot up Kagome's spine and made her posture rigid for a single instant. Across from her, Yoko had turned very pale, so pale that her silver-blue skin had lost all tones but white.

As Kagome was turning to look at him, Sesshomaru stared down into Yoko's wide and empty eyes, and let out a sharp and impatient breath.

"Foolish female, what are you doing – making your peace with death? I brought you here to please my mate, to entertain her, divert her, teach her. And now that you are doing this, you think I will kill you?"

The river-dragon relaxed visibly, and went from pale to flushed very quickly. Sesshomaru turned his eyes from her to Kagome and allowed the faintest bit of warmth to tame his expression.

"Do you have an answer, mate? Were you afraid to ask? I have made it clear, have I not, that -"

Kagome smiled and reached up to pat his arm.

"Yes, Sesshomaru, I know I'm safe with you. I came here with you, didn't I? I wouldn'thave done that if I thought you were going to hurt me."

And she wrinkled her nose at him.

"I didn't ask you because...because I was worried for _you_, not for me."

Kagome turned her eyes away from his gaze, blushing.

"I didn't want to make you think of unpleasant things. That's all."

With his head tilted to one side, Sesshomaru peered at her as if she were a strange creature he had never seen before.

"You worried...for _me_?"

Kagome nodded.

"Why does that make me feel _warm_?"

He was absolutely horrified to discover by the twin expressions of shock facing him that he had spoken aloud.

It was Yoko who took it upon herself to answer.

"Perhaps my lord is happy to be cared for. I make bold to say that for many years, I have known my lord was in need of love – and that without ever meeting you, Sesshomaru-dono."

Sesshomaru scowled darkly in her direction, but the expression failed to have any impact.

"You are just like Shizuka; I can see already that you will go too far one day -"

He turned and left the room in an attempt to be intimidating, but he could hear their laughter floating down the hall behind him.

Despite himself, he smiled.

She was too forward, that Yoko, and it was none of her business. But...perhaps she was right. _Perhaps_.

There was no denying that when he was with Kagome, he felt suffused with light, instead of his usual cold. And the thought that _she _was concerned for _him -_

Once, he would have been insulted. Now, though...that warm feeling – that feeling, a molten fist in his middle, a flower furious in nature...

In a flash he understood.

_I know. Yes, now I know._

And in his knowledge he was strengthened; he felt suddenly invulnerable, as if encased in armor of clear light.

_I could love her; my mate -_

He said it out loud, once, just to himself, since there was no one else there to hear.

"I could love her -"

And then he sat down on the ground, and leaned his head back against the cool stone of the fortress behind him...and laughed. Laughed, as he had not since he was tiny pup, almost beyond his own memory; laughed, not from mirth but to ease his heart.

He felt like he was waking from a long sleep; he felt _alive_, felt his blood pulsing through his veins, the air cool in his lungs, the scents of the fortress' night soft and sweet - the scent of Kagome, softest and sweetest of all.

The moment did not last.

The tingling of his new awareness, his new feeling, became cold and thick. He felt the danger of Kagome's circumstances tightening around his throat like a chain, and for a moment was consumed by hatred for Inuyasha.

He had wanted the woman; he could admit that. He had wanted her, the flesh she flaunted, the power she hid...but denied himself, because she was human. Not weak...not worthless... but still human, mortal, _vulnerable_.

Then had come that moment, the moment when he had realized who it was that his brother had mated. The feelings rushed through him now as they had then – wrath and lust; fury and possession. The temptation had been too great to be denied; a single knowledge had filled him:

_She is mine. _

The woman he had wanted, and not wanted...his pathetic and powerful desire.

_And now...now I stand at the brink of a far worse temptation. That warmth – how easy it would be to give in, to embrace it, to surrender. _

He saw now that the decisions he thought he had made with cool reason as his ally each hung upon the woman, fragile as spun glass – and even seeing it, he found himself unable to change anything.

Sesshomaru closed his eyes, and dug his claws into the earth.

_I must be very careful. I could love her...but I must not_.

"I _must__ not_..."

* * *

><p>AN: 1200 words! Bwaha...I feel so evil, but really...Sesshomaru is far too conflicted to come easily to love :p I now pause in the frantic typing of words to decide how soon I should let Kagome have the rest of her answers...tee hee. There are a couple scenes I have written ahead that make me laugh really evilly...I was hoping to wrap up Alpha by the 200th chapter so I could get going on the sequel, but that...is so not happening. ::sigh:: Oh well!

Please Review!


	184. Chapter 184

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXIV

Prompt From MamiLuckey: A Word

_Epiphany_

Sesshomaru knew that such a resolution carried an admission within itself; he strode through the darkness of the fortress, his eyes flickering into shadows and silences with more than their usual suspicion.

He could not forget the uncomfortable feeling that had permeated the council meeting; he could not forget the moment of vision that gave impetus to his terrible thoughts. Was the decision he had made a wise one? Would Kagome suffer for his mistake? Too late, now, for second thoughts; the summons had already been sent. The day of his mother's coming was set.

He did not see that even as he denied his feelings, they drove him. The line between _caring _and _loving _had already been crossed.

Perhaps it was because he had cared for longer than he was willing to admit; perhaps it was because even that admission had cost him dearly in pride and the remembrance of past regrets.

Kagome's coming had been as the falling of the final flake of snow that unleashes the avalanche; within him had been released a tumult of feelings long buried, the memory of pain and a time when he had not been immune to fear.

A time of suffering.

* * *

><p>AN: This prompt came from MamiLuckey, a reviewer on , yay! Is this what they call reader participation? I think it is! How exciting! Onward to the next chapter, in which Kagome finagles, Yoko makes a promise, and Sesshomaru speaks of secrets and the past...

Please Review!


	185. Chapter 185

Drabble Collection: Alpha

CLXXXV

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Arrangement_

Kagome's curiosity about Izayoi remained, but after Sesshomaru's interruption Yoko was less willing to discuss even the little she knew. She had guessed – and rightly – that Sesshomaru had every intention of giving Kagome the answers she wanted, but that he wanted to tell her himself.

The memory of old suspicions never confirmed came to the surface of Yoko's thoughts, but she kept those to herself, too. She had spoken truthfully her belief that Sesshomaru was in need of love; she did not know why he believed himself invulnerable to it, above it, safer without it, but every instinct she possessed told her that this was as far from the truth as could be.

Love was trust, the power to protect, resolve surpassing earthly boundaries. Love was a needed thing for anyone, but especially for one as strong as Sesshomaru. How else could he hope to reach the height of power that was truly his, if not by protecting those he loved?

No...she would not risk speaking anything that might damage the chance of closeness between Sesshomaru and his new mate.

That night, as she put Kagome to bed beneath a pile of soft furs and made up her own futon near the door, Yoko lay sleepless, listening to the soft breaths of her new Lady, watching sleep erase care and worry from her face.

In the dark where no one could hear, Yoko made a request and a promise.

"Aid him, Lady; teach Sesshomaru-dono the truth, and quickly. I will help you, as much as I am able."

Rain began to fall as she was speaking, filling the night with a dim patter of sound. An hour passed, and then another, and Yoko lay drowsing, listening to the sounds of the storm and Kagome's restless shifting as she turned in unknown dreams.

The sound of the _shoji _opening behind her brought Yoko quickly to her feet, fangs bared, claws splayed in readiness for violence. Her voice came out in a low and vicious hiss, a noise of dragon-danger.

"Who disturbs my Lady? I will not permit it!"

She heard Kagome stirring into wakefulness behind her, sitting up in bed, and then cool, low tones answering her challenge.

"Your diligence is appreciated, though...misplaced, Yoko."

She stood suddenly straight, and all the aggression drained from her posture.

"Sesshomaru-dono!"

Behind her, Kagome yawned and spoke quietly, questioning.

"Who is it, Yoko...Sesshomaru?"

He stepped forward then, and looked down at her, feeling desire stir and wondering at it. Was there no end to his want for this woman?

It was her appearance, he thought, the way the her hair tumbled about her shoulders, and her eyes blinked at him so sleepily, half-aware, utterly vulnerable...the way skin peeked at him from the gap in her robe that had opened while she slept; the way she smiled at him: soft, open, pleased.

"I didn't think you were coming to bed tonight, Sesshomaru; I'm glad you're here."

"Hm..."

She took his faint, thoughtful sound for acceptance, and wiggled her way to the far side of the bed, turning just so. Again, he felt that faint prickling of desire...

But the scent of her was the scent of sleep, not of sex, and he found himself becoming drowsy just being in her presence, though sleeping here had not been his intention.

_It is her aura; miko sweetness...sleep, and power...her desire to have me near. _

And his eyes went suddenly wide as a realization swept over him like static lightning.

_It is the bond, the bond between us; she touches me, as I touched her – but does she know it? _

He looked at Kagome, at her half-closed eyes, her fingers reaching vaguely towards him.

_No. She does not know it; that is why it is so gentle...so delicate, I almost could not tell._

For a moment he closed his eyes, and then turned and summoned Yoko with a glance.

"Undress me, female. I will spend the night with my mate."

And then quickly – too quickly – Kagome spoke up.

"I'll do it, Sesshomaru -"

Pulling herself up, she knelt at the edge of the bed and reached for the ties on his clothes; this time, she managed the knot of his sash by herself. Yoko stood quiet, her eyes on Kagome, and took the garments from her lady's hands as each one was removed.

She appreciated almost immediately why Kagome had taken this _task_ for herself; if she had such a mate as Sesshomaru-dono - ! The thought came with more than a flicker of amusement. It was good that Kagome was possessive of her mate...and better, that she was willing to assert herself because of it.

When Sesshomaru was undressed, Yoko took the pile of clothes and armor with her out of the room, and made for Sesshomaru's own chambers. It was as good a time as any to begin establishing herself as the first companion of the new Lady of the West; it would be interesting to see what the females who usually attended Sesshomaru would have to say...and more interesting still to hear what her Lady had to say about _them_.

Yoko's departure seemed to ease some sort of tension in Kagome, and Sesshomaru found her snuggling quite readily against his side, her head on his chest, her fingers tracing aimless patterns across his skin. For a moment, he considered pushing her away; it seemed the sort of thing he should do, if he intended to keep his distance – to _not care_. But it was pleasant...her warmth against him, her touching...and there was no one here, no witness, no one to prognosticate trouble.

And then she spoke, and all his pleasant feelings evaporated.

"Sesshomaru...will you tell me – will you tell me what really happened to your father and Izayoi?"

He was silent for a moment; Kagome felt him tensing beside her, but refused to regret the question. He had _told_ her to ask him – had made it so that even Yoko wouldn't answer her now. Surely he would understand why she needed to know...

She was not disappointed.

"The day...the day my father brought his woman home, I challenged him – his decision, his stupidity. I asked him how he could think to claim such a weak and worthless woman; he defied me, and said that I underestimated humans – their cunning, their intelligence, their power."

He closed his eyes for a long moment. Kagome hesitated on the brink of a word, and then closed her mouth as he began speaking again.

"He said this, though he knew I had dealt with humans many times, both in battle and in Council. Your kind spreads quickly, and even through years of plague and war and famine village after village grew and spawned others, encroaching on the West. He would not understand that I spoke only of the woman herself – of her scent, frail, sickly, weak. Of her thin limbs; of days spent in a languishing stillness – of how cruelly the marks of his passion imprinted themselves on her skin...of how slow she was to heal, of how long the smell of her blood lingered."

Sesshomaru leaned his head back against the pile of furs and reached out to touch Kagome's cheek. He allowed his fingers to follow the curves of her body, stroked the smooth skin of her shoulder, the side of her breast.

"That woman – she was not like you, Kagome. It was my _father_ who did not know humans, who believed that because she was of royal blood, she was the best your kind had to offer. I do not know what he told her, to lure her here. I know that it was after they had been meeting for some time; I know also that the rumors began long before she ever crossed the threshold of this house.

Sesshomaru paused for a moment, considering, scowling.

"Though she discovered truths that displeased her, she still stayed for a time – I remember the day that she left, never to return. She was pregnant with my _brother_ by then."

He spat the word contemptuously.

"My father thought she would be safe among her own kind, her own family...but nothing could have been further from the truth. She had been gone too long; when it was discovered she was carrying a demon's child, she was exiled to an outer gallery and left to await the birth."

He looked away from her, stared up at the ceiling.

"I know, because I watched her run from the burning wreck of her family's palace. I found her watching the world go to ruin from the edge of a snowy wood."

Kagome stared at his profile with wide eyes, and then asked a question that had been bothering her for a long time.

"Did _you _kill her?"

His eyes drifted closed.

"No. Not then."

* * *

><p>AN: 1500 words...of doom! Teehee. Many revelations in this chapter, and many more to come...as soon as I write them. So: onward! Coming Soon: If not then, then when? Or...if? The nature of the truth is fickle, and fate walks on regardless...

Please Review!


	186. Chapter 186

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXVI

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Forever Yours_

Kagome's breath caught in her throat; what a casual confession!

"But it _was _you? Why, Sesshomaru?"

His eyes slanted in her direction, burning with a pale gold flame that she had never seen there before.

"I hated that woman; that woman, and my brother. With all my soul, I hated her. She was the cause of my father's death; she robbed me of the challenge...of my vengeance...she was only a woman! I suspected that she would hurt him; never in my darkest dreams did I think she would destroy him!"

Kagome pushed herself up onto one elbow and tucked her hair behind her ear, looked at him seriously.

"Sesshomaru, I am _only a woman_ too. You don't think _I'd_ hurt _you - y_ou...you trustme, don't you?"

The silence that followed her question was a palpable thing, but Sesshomaru knew he could only give her one answer.

"Yes, Kagome. I trust you. But if you were any other woman, I would have killed you; I would never have accepted you."

Startled, Kagome sank back to his side, but he spoke to soothe her, closing his eyes again.

"You are mine forever, Kagome. Do not be afraid."

* * *

><p>AN: Ah, the power of DDN! 200 words...and more to come, I expect!

Please Review!


	187. Chapter 187

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXVII

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Irresistible Desire, Irresistibly Desired_

Kagome was quiet, her mind seething with questions.

_Does he mean...is he telling me that even before...that he wanted _me_, just me, Higurashi Kagome...before anything happened?_

The thought was so strange, so powerful, that she shied away from it.

"So – so you killed Izayoi because you hated her...and that was when Inuyasha was very small, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"Then why didn't you kill Inuyasha, too? Why wait for -"

"Mate! I killed the woman, yes, but not because I sought her out to do so. She came to me – she bought my brother the years he has lived so far with her own life."

Kagome's thoughts whirred in confusion.

"Bought - "

"Yes. That was the price; her life...not his."

He paused.

"She agreed; easily. And then she told me that my father had left a message, a message that he knew I would not want. She said...that he knew my fear; that love is an irresistible desire, that I was vulnerable in my...perfection."

His eyes glittered with golden satisfaction, and then grew dark.

"It was _then_ that I killed her – and I have not ceased cursing my father since."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! The quote is from Robert Frost...onward! :D

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	188. Chapter 188

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXVIII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Demonstration_

"Sesshomaru how did she – how did you -"

"How did I kill her?"

Kagome winced to hear him, but nodded; she had considered carefully before she asked that question, had felt it burning her lips as she spoke. Despite the fact that Sesshomaru had insisted she ask, she was hesitant. There was pain in his words; it confused her.

She found herself filled with the urge to comfort him – and the urge to back away from this subject that stirred her curiosity yet was terrible for him.

But his answer was unexpected, and more disturbing than she wanted to admit.

"You already know, Kagome."

His eyes were closed again; she snuggled closer to his side seeking a more comfortable position.

"That doesn't make any sense. I know you don't like to talk about this – I mean, it was sort of obvious that you wouldn't, but...how would _I_ know what happened to her?"

Sesshomaru's muscles tensed. His words came out hard and sharp.

"Because I have done to you what I did to her. Or rather I have _tried_ – to melt the flesh from your bones, boil bone into nothing. _You _survived, Kagome. You were unharmed."

Kagome shuddered silently, remembering his fury on the day he spoke of; the day she had followed Inuyasha into a realm of youkai tombs...the day Sesshomaru had lost his arm. She had almost died, a demonstration of his power; she could still remember the fear overwhelming her, the smell of poison strangely sweet, an overpowering floral odor.

Kagome's shudder became a shiver; Sesshomaru's voice interrupted her recollections.

"That woman - she had nothing to protect her. Her screams...I had wanted to hear them for a long time, but they were not as pleasant as anticipation made them. My father was not there to hear."

She pressed her lips to his ribs and peered up at him from the corners of her eyes.

"I don't think that was a good thing for you to have done, Sesshomaru. It sounds like you wanted to hurt your father, more than you wanted to hurt her; but you...you know that now, don't you?"

She heard his heart beating faster beneath her ear, his breath irregular, and knew she had spoken truth.

Sesshomaru's thoughts raced.

_She sees more than I anticipated, more than I wanted._

For a moment, he was irritated at his own restlessness, his indecision.

_I should have let Yoko tell her!_

But that, too, was wrong, and he knew it. No one but himself knew the truth. He had made it that way in the days when all these things had been fresh and angry wounds.

* * *

><p>AN: 450 words...how strange a number for this prompt! Anyway, more soon – I have to edit some chapters from DDN, but they're already completed, so it won't take too long!

Please Review!


	189. Chapter 189

Drabble Collection Alpha

CLXXXIX

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_More Like Her_

Kagome ran out of questions after that, and her eyes closed. The minutes were not many before she was asleep, and Sesshomaru was grateful for the respite. He had not expected her to dredge up the entirety of the worst part of his past; he had not anticipated her curiosity, but he saw now that he had been foolish not to.

No other woman had ever set foot on this island; only his brother's mother...and Kagome.

He had been afraid that the closer he got to Kagome, the more like _her_ she would seem...but nothing could be further from the truth.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! The prompt and quote of it in this chapter are the title of a song by someone called...Miranda Lambert. Ah, the magic of DDN! Onwards...shortly. I think I have to write a filler chapter with the stalker song prompt, because it won't leave me alone :p

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	190. Chapter 190

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXC

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Every Breath You Take_

The night passed slowly. Relieved of the drowsy power that was Kagome's influence over him, Sesshomaru lay awake through the dark hours, listening to the sounds of night and thinking – about the duties that awaited him in the coming day, about the mess with his mother, about the woman beside him; his mate.

As time stole by, it was Kagome who came to occupy the whole of his attention. He watched her sleep, the dreaming movement of her eyes beneath their lids, the soft snuffle of her breath as she turned against him...

When Yoko returned before dawn, he too was sleeping.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words; ah, the stalker song. If future history remembers only one thing about Sting or The Police, let's hope it isn't that :p Anyway, back to already written stuff, which means two more chapters that are already done :D

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	191. Chapter 191

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCI

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Obsession_

The morning came dark with cold rain, and Sesshomaru woke early to find that Shizuka had left in the night with the message for his mother. He was irritated; Shizuka was needed for the arrangement of many details concerning both the meeting with Hashiridokoro and Kagome's presentation at court.

No other of his councilors would do half as well as Shizuka; the twins were disinterested, Musashi too coarse, Yoshio stifled by self-consciousness – and Akihito had not the slightest bit of experience.

This was his least favorite duty, of all the things that were required of him as Lord of the West. Even the infrequent meetings with those human lords he could not avoid did not aggravate him so – perhaps because they _were _infrequent. There was a reason he spent so much of his time on walkabout, guarding the borders and seeking out enemies to conquer - the confluence of fury and faithless obsession that was his _court_ did not interest him in the slightest.

But every season had its equinox or solstice festival; every moon its feast at dark and bright.

For the twentieth time, Sesshomaru read his list of invitees and growled

_When Shizuka returns, I will strangle__him...slowly._

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words...I have just retyped this chapter TWICE because of my own stupidity in copying and pasting and accidentally LOSING what I copied and pasted...arg. This chapter is dedicated to water, because without it, I would be thirsty :p

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	192. Chapter 192

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCII

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

"_Love That Is Not Madness Is Not Love"_

So irritated was Sesshomaru that he did not sense Kagome coming close to him until her fingers were on the back of his neck, cool and calming.

"Mate; good morning."

Kagome giggled faintly; he felt her fingers moving beneath the weight of his hair, her hands pressing against his shoulders, massaging dense muscles tight with frustration.

"Is it really? You don't look like it, Sesshomaru; what's wrong?"

With one hand, he began to gesture at the mess of papers covering his desk, and then let out a low sigh as her fingers found a particularly tense spot. Her question dug beneath the surface of his worries and forced him to confront the truth.

"Nothing is _wrong_ – it is the fact that everything is _right_ that bothers me. How long do you think it will last?"

She smiled; he _felt_ it.

"Not very long, probably. But I'm not worried, Sesshomaru."

That, more than her massage, relaxed him – and he thought about what a terrible thing that was. The very thing that endangered him, the very one who was as onrushing doom; she soothed him as nothing else could.

A chill touched him then; he shuddered.

_Was this how it was for father? Is there no way to avoid this madness – to avoid this love of her?_

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! Quote is from a guy named Pedro Calderon de la Barca...waiting for the bank or I'd be sleeping now, but this is all I have done, so more later :D

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	193. Chapter 193

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCIII

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Saddest Story Never Told_

After an hour or so, Kagome left Sesshomaru to growl at his papers and went in search of Yoko, wandering the long galleries of the Inner Palace, peering surreptitiously at the shadows visible through shoji.

She found her new companion thigh-deep in boxes of robes that had come from the Silk Mistress, but Yoko waded out of them at the sight of Kagome, still in her sleeping yukata.

Kagome submitted to Yoko's horrified admonition with guilty grace, and trotted off to be washed, brushed, and dressed. Truth be told, she didn't really mind; it was nice to have company, someone concerned for her, someone to mother her a little.

In the afternoon, guided by Yoko's directions, she made her way to a spot of sun in a western courtyard, and immersed herself in reading Izayoi's pillow-book.

She had asked Sesshomaru all the questions she would ask about that _particular_ topic; it was a sad, broken story she half-wished he had not told.

But Izayoi's words did more than a little to stir her own anxieties; to bring back memories Kagome wished she could banish forever. Of Sesshomaru at his most violent...of the day they had met...of the first time he had brought her here.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words; be prepared, however, for a couple of monster chapters that wouldn't end :p Onward, to Izayoi's Pillow-book...and then perhaps to Shizuka and Inumama...I haven't decided if I should write that or not. Oh! And the title is a song title from a band called "I Am Ghost".

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	194. Chapter 194

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCIV

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Ink_

_When I first met my love, it was night, and ill-omened; this night, the night through which we stay awake so that unruly spirits might not possess us. At court, with my sister and her women, this was not such a difficult task; we played go and hentsuki to pass the time, told tales and peered at picture scrolls. _

_Here, I find it is harder. This tradition, it is supposed to protect us from the spirits of beasts, ghosts, and demons._

_Is there even a purpose now to my wakefulness? Then, it did not protect me. It was my downfall; he found me by the lakeside, and I – how could I resist? _

_They tell us tales of terror and horror when they tell us of youkai. They do not tell us they are beautiful; that they bear eyes so liquid, so full of flame, that a woman **must** submit. Or perhaps I am the lucky one; I, who have found this demon who can love. _

_But I do not think so; I think, they feel not less than us but more – that there are only a few amongst us humans who are capable of suffering under_ _such great passions and surviving. _

_It has been two years since that day, two years exactly; and so perhaps I have proved myself one of the lucky ones...but truly, I do not know if this is so. Do I love him? Oh, yes. How could I help but love him? He needed me as no one has ever needed me; he secured my love the first time I saw that even such strength as his could be broken. _

_But am I safe with him? _

_Perhaps. I remind myself that he is beautiful, but also deadly, at the same time as I remind myself that he would not have invited me to this place if he did not intend to keep me well. I wonder, though - when I think **to love**, that is one thing; when he thinks, **to love** – maybe that is something else. And how would we know? _

_Perhaps each of us says 'I love you', but neither of us understands. We say the same words, , but...is it the same flame burning? _

Kagome's eyes went wide, reading that. It brought to mind the words Sesshomaru had spoken in answer to a question she had not meant to ask. "_I do not know if I __**will **__love you, but I am...capable._"

Her throat grew momentarily tight; she shook her head to dispel the memory and turned her attention back to the book, turned the page.

_When my love brought me here, there was no time for questions. By the time it had become clear to me that something was not quite right about the manner in which I was traveling, it was far too late for me to protest. _

_I looked out the window, and then clung to my love; his carriage – it flies! I saw the ocean, moving far beneath me, for the first time; a sea as dark as the painted waves on my favorite comb. Tiny lips of white pouted and yawned on the surface of the water - great waves, my love told me, made small by distance. _

_The journey was a beautiful one, and at the end of it was this island, where I am sitting now, reminiscing and wondering when he will return to tell me what duties or entertainments I have been brought to attend to. And I must remember, too, to ask him about the funeral procession that was leaving just as I was; for I know no one close to me was suffering any illness, and yet I still worry. _

_Perhaps I do not want these answers, but...still. I must ask._

Kagome let out a breath and paused in her reading, leaned her head back, rolled her shoulders. That was a feeling she knew well; she had learned it first with her mother, when her father died...and later, with Inuyasha. Now, with Sesshomaru, it was a different kind of question, a different kind of trouble that plagued her – but still..

She turned back to the words on the page, wondering. Had Izayoi's fears been for a reason? Could she learn something of the son from actions of the father?

She was not to be soothed; Izayoi's experience had been no better than her own.

_How could he have done this? I am stolen, stolen, not a bride and not sent with my father's blessing...or maybe I was **sent**, but not to **him**! _

_The funeral procession was for me! My father's blessing consigns my wandering spirit to the hands of the gods! He has **deceived** me, he has deceived me – oh, I cannot know, now, if he loves me or if I am only a toy to him!_

_Is it only an irresistible desire? _

_Is it flesh and nothing else that moves him?_

_Should I have known better? He is a demon, he is a demon! All his promises of forever, they echo ugly in my ears._

_I have been stolen, and I will never see my home again! _

Kagome felt tears welling at the thought of Izayoi's despair, and shook them off with a fierce swipe of her hand.

"Never see my home again..."

It was a terrible thought. The reasons were different, but her own situation was the same. Even if she wanted to, she would never again try to travel through time. She doubted very much, now that Sesshomaru had her, that he would ever let her go.

But she could not ignore the twinge of feeling inside her; she had waited so long to belong, to be wanted...

_And even if it is by Sesshomaru...is that so bad? _

She looked down at the book in her hands, at the characters marching in elegant progression down the paper, the words sharp and black, the ink as yet unfaded.

She turned the page.

* * *

><p>AN: 1000 words...phew! And you know what's REALLY scary? More to come! Seriously...too many words. Too Many! This chapter is dedicated to a green bear that was a gift to Naq, who now has the unfortunate future of being named Weiner Meister. Poor bear :p

Please Review!


	195. Chapter 195

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCV

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Quixotic_

_This is a world of wonder, and I see more power, more magic in a single day than I might otherwise have seen in my whole life. The only darkness is my is fear; the only problem is my weakness, **my** weakness. _

_And now that I know what was done to bring me here – now that I know the sacrifice I made, without choosing to make it..._

_We spent three days in seclusion before we left my father's house; even now, I cannot believe the lengths he went to, the intensity of his deception. Those three days...they were romance, the romance of a young girl's dreams. _

_Now...that is all dead now. I still do love him; I cannot help that. His apology – when he saw how I hurt I was...that was a strange thing. It is not common knowledge that youkai can be so soft, so vulnerable; perhaps it is their best kept secret, a thing they fear we will discover, and exploit. _

_My love is Inuyoukai; I know that. But never before today did I consider what it meant – the Inu in his nature, rather than the youkai. _

_It means tenacity, loyalty, cunning, and strength._

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! Onward, I think...perhaps...maybe? This chapter is dedicated to DemonQueen, and the power of reviews! :D

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	196. Chapter 196

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCVI

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN 2/13/12

_Holding On, Letting Go_

Kagome flipped forward to the next page; it seemed to have been written some time later.

_My love does not know it, but I have heard the whispers; I think often on youkai cruelty, youkai kindness. _

_They want me dead; I do not fear for myself, but..._

_Ah...even here, I cannot admit it! Is it shame? No...and though I am frightened, it is not fear, either. I do not want to believe, so it will not be true. _

_Would the terror still face me from dark corners then?_

_No; no...I __**must**__ write it. _

_Here is the thing that has haunted me for fourteen days and nights, and which I have told no one – not even __**him**__:_

_I am with child. _

_I am with child...and my child will be neither human nor youkai._

_There will be no hiding the truth from anyone. They will all know that I am a demon's woman...__**defiled**__. _

_I am not ashamed, but I am not strong enough to tell them so. For two and twenty years, I have spoken in whispers. No one will listen now to anything else. _

_And my love; what will __**he**__ say, when I tell him this? _

_For the first time since we met, I fear him._

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words; something of interest, I think; Izayoi's own thoughts "on the son she loved and lost in a labor of loneliness". The prompt for this chapter was from a quote by Herman Hesse: "Some of us think holding on makes us strong; but sometimes it is letting go." Onward!

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	197. Chapter 197

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCVII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Dreams_

_Today, I met Sesshomaru for the second time._

_The first time I met him, he came upon me in the courtyard; how long he watched me before I noticed him, I could not say. He looks something like his father, but he has his mother's eyes...her posture, her coldness, her...cruelty. _

_I remember that day, months ago now, as if it was yesterday. He said to me "So; you are the woman who wounds my father." And I - __I denied it – oh, how I denied it – but he told me that there was no way for me to prevent it; that already, I have damaged his father's reputation beyond retrieval. _

_This is a youkai thing that I do not understand. Perhaps that is why he is cruel to me; I know already that he hates me for his father's sake. But though I understand that they hate my mortality, my frailty, though I know that is my humanity alone that disgusts them, and that nothing else about me do they know – I cannot see **why**. _

_How am I dangerous? What could I do? What can it mean, that I am chosen as his women? I have heard whispers many times that say human flesh is softer, sweeter to youkai lusts. I do not understand how they say these words, and then look askance at me. _

_All I know is that that day, looking into Sesshomaru's eyes, I saw that he spoke the truth, no matter what I might wish. That my love suffers for my presence; that there is no safety for me here...no safety for me anywhere. He was right, when he spoke then: if nothing else, my mortality itself will one day wound my love, a wound beyond healing, a wound beyond this world._

_Today, when I met Sesshomaru for the second time, it was only in passing – I think. I went up to him; I asked why it was that he ventured into my chamber._

_He said he was in search of his father; that my rooms were the most likely place to find him, now. And then he asked me why it was I stayed; why it was that I, a human, risked the dangers of this place merely for **love**. _

_He sneered as he said it; perhaps he thinks me ignorant of the death that waits beyond the limits of my own rooms? But I told him that I thought love worth many dangers; many horrors; many deaths. _

_He said he did not think that I knew what horror was; that whatever I had seen of death, it was not as much as **he **had seen. And he asked me what it was that I sought, here; what it was that humans sought to gain from their meager time on this earth._

_I told him that men seek knowledge, greatness, the future for their sons. That I sought nothing different. But he said to me:_

"_Woman, your kind are responsible for the burning of the ancient forests; for the death of many youkai and ancient beasts. When the last demon dies and the green leaves fail, so will the magic - until finally, there is only the stench of sulfur and the ring of steel left in a world devoid of power...a world of only men. __**That**__ is what your kin desire; __**that**__ is why I will destroy you if I have a chance."_

_His face was dark, an expression I have never seen on his father's face. And I could not deny it – any of it. _

_I should have known better than to approach him – especially after...the first time. I should know by_ _now that though my love is friendly to me, no other of his kith and kin will ever be so._

_In the afternoon, after he spoke to me, I slept, and dreamed. _

_I saw a future where everything he had said was the truth, and all of it my fault._

_My fault!_

_If that is the truth, what kami could ever save me?_

Suddenly disturbed, Kagome shut the book and squeezed it tightly in her hands - as if that way, she could forget.

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words...phew! I don't know what it is the last few days...I keep almost deleting everything! How awful! Anyway, norton saved me this time...so onward...to a short amount of time passing swiftly, and Kagome making realizations she does not want.

Please Review!


	198. Chapter 198

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCVIII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Blossom_

Those words were the last Kagome was able to read for several days, and they haunted her. In her mind, she drew pictures of the events she had read. She saw Sesshomaru, tall and pale and cold, his mouth moving to shape terrible words. She saw Izayoi, standing with the stiff pride of a princess...and then she remembered Sesshomaru speaking, his confession: "_Because I have done to you what I did to her. Or rather I have ___tried___ – to melt the flesh from your bones, boil bone into nothing."_

In the evenings, while the moon was low in the curve of a lavender sky, Sesshomaru came for her, his eyes warm, his lips warm, his hands warmer still. Then, while he was with her in the passionate dark, it was hard to think that he would ever hurt her – and after, she was not left with many hours in which to question him, or his motives.

Though he came to her every day, sometimes many times in a day, he came to her full of desire, not for speech. Whispers moved through the palace and around her; often, she turned just in time to find dark eyes watching her movements, waiting...

She knew what it was they waited for; they waited for her death, for a moment of inattention; they waited for Sesshomaru's favor to fall away from her like the autumn leaves from the trees.

Then she would be bare before them, stripped of all protection but her own power, which none who had not encountered it deemed a threat.

With Sesshomaru himself, she was at first pleased and then afraid; three and four days passed without many words between them, without any sounds but those of flesh meeting in pleasure. Was that all he wanted from her, all he would ever want?

If that was so, how long could she possibly last here? She knew, _knew,_ that there were other females in this place, and that some of them were _not_ servants...but she said nothing, because she was pleased by Sesshomaru's attention, if exhausted by it; because she did not _want_ him to go to other females...and because to admit that was to admit to something deeper, something she found far more disturbing.

At night if he was not with her she felt it most strongly; alone in the dark of her gilded chamber she couldn't help but think he was with _those_ _others_. She knew her feelings for what they were – _jealousy!_ - and in them sensed a great danger. One could not be jealous if one did not care – and she could not have _feelings_ for _Sesshomaru_, could neither afford nor justify them.

So, alone in her rooms on the fifth night of her stay, Kagome paced and muttered and glared at walls and, finally, wept – and admitted, in silence, that she _did _care for him, just a little - and that this blossoming of feelings was just _awful_.

Nothing could be worse!

It was late, very late, when Sesshomaru came to her – and for the first time since he had brought her here she shied away from his hands, his kisses, and looked at him with a worried expression.

"Sesshomaru – Sesshomaru, where have you been?"

If he was surprised at her question, he did not show it – but neither could she tell if his answer was truth or lie.

"With the Council. You are not used to the hours of a youkai fortress, Kagome. Sleep, when you have need – and do not worry."

He stood, and made as if to leave her, but she caught him by his sleeve, and he scented sudden terror, strong from her.

"Kagome. What is it – what do you fear? If I am not with you, Yoko will -"

"I can protect myself!"

He was relieved to hear the fire in her voice – and then utterly struck by what she said next.

"But I can't stand it that you might go to _them_ – the other females. The ones who want you – the ones you _should_ be with. That they could be touching you - that you could be touching them - I hate it. I _hate _it!"

The words came out with more far feeling in them than she had intended. Sesshomaru stared at her, surprised. She saw that and shook her head, disbelieving.

"You think it's strange? What would _you_ do, if there were a half-dozen men who might keep _my_ bed?"

The intensity, the violence of his reaction startled them both – the red in his eyes, the rawness of his glare.

"I will kill _anyone _who tries to touch you!"

She leaned forward onto her elbows and stared up at him. There was a long moment of silence, and then he nodded once, and reached forward to touch her lips with one finger.

"Kagome. _Mate_. I am – sorry. I understand. Wait here."

He left briefly; there were startled noises, and then the sound of many feet...and Sesshomaru returning.

"I have called them here – the females who displease you. I will be rid of them..._now_."

Almost as he was finished speaking, there was a rustle of noise and four females entered, all of them haughty in their youkai perfection.

Swiftly, without warning to them or to Kagome, Sesshomaru's claws flashed out, sank deep into a throat...a heart...a throat...a fleeing back.

Kagome stared at her floor, suddenly awash in blood. The tawny furs were dyed crimson; the black pelts glistened like fresh kills. Four pairs of youkai eyes glistened at her, dull and lifeless, all their jeweled tones stolen by death.

"Sesshomaru! You didn't have to...why did...Sesshomaru!"

Sesshomaru shook blood off his fingers, stared at the mess with distaste and then turned to Kagome. Her sudden increase in distress filled him with confusion.

"Mate, I do not understand. That you did not want me to have these females; this is easy for me. But _now_ what upsets you?"

Kagome took a deep breath and looked at him with wide-eyes.

"You...you _killed _them, Sesshomaru!"

He nodded.

"Yes. Of course. Did _you_ want to -"

"No, _I_ didn't want to! You – you just._..why_ would you do that?"

He eyed her, surprised.

"Mate, if I had merely sent them away they would have been a danger to you until they were dead, each one of them angry at the loss of their place...the loss of the prestige which comes with being mine."

His head tilted; his pupils dilated, looking at her.

"Now, only you are mine, Kagome. Only you – no other female...no other woman. The females that remain here are only servants; as you wanted, mate. As you desired."

Slowly, dragging her eyes from blood and mayhem, Kagome nodded. Her voice came hollow from her throat.

"Will you kill _me_ as easily as that?"

Sesshomaru let out a long breath; he understood her panic now, or thought he did, and answered her as best he could.

"Once, I might have. But not now...and never again, Kagome."

* * *

><p>AN: 1200 words! Another monster chapter completed, and so therefore, on we go. Kagome's jealousy has had unintended consequences...and remember, Sesshomaru's mother is due in two days time, though Kagome knows nothing of it...yet. Coming Soon: some of Kagome's thoughts...and a living Inuyasha comes out of the forest and encounters Sango and Miroku. Does he stay a living Inuyasha? Read on...and find out :D

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	199. Chapter 199

Drabble Collection Alpha

CXCIX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Ribbon_

Sesshomaru fixed Kagome with a serious gaze, and reached out to lift her chin with a finger that was not bloodstained.

"I protect you, Kagome – not just once, but for all time. Anyone who threatens you – I will _destroy_ them. And enjoy it."

That last came almost as an afterthought; he was surprised when she collapsed into a fit of giggles.

Perhaps it was a slightly hysterical reaction, but in some way she couldn't explain his words made her feel...much better. Was it just because he didn't deny how fractious their history had been? Perhaps it was because he had never once lied to her...though he _had_ misled her with the truth a few times.

But how could he mislead her with this?

He had killed his own concubines, without a second thought. Because she had asked it; because she had shown him her pain. The act made her feel guilty; she would never have said anything if she had known it would result in deaths.

She could not deny any longer, that she was caring for him...and it was becoming harder by far to deny that _he_ might care for _her_. She wasn't sure any more which one would be more terrifying – but terrifying it was, and dangerous. She _knew_ that; though the knowledge was yet unfinished inside her, it was growing, day by day.

She had seen more than enough angry eyes, quickly turned away, heard more than enough rebellious whispers, hastily silenced when she approached – or sometimes not, sometimes continuing, so quiet she could not distinguish anything but the danger. They took advantage of her human weakness – of her ears, that could not hear the subtlety of youkai voices, of her nose, which could scent neither deception nor ill intentions.

She had not mentioned it to Sesshomaru because she was certain he knew – but she wondered why _he_ had not mentioned it to _her_.

Now, she knew – and though it warmed her to think of, she knew that he was forming a habit she must break – sharply, sweetly, like the edge of ribbon candy.

_He thinks to protect me – but I **must**_ _protect **myself**. Or leave – and then I will never be able to return._

She surprised herself with a pang of loss at even the thought. Just like Sesshomaru had said it was becoming home, this place – this terrible, beautiful place.

_Home means I have to be safe here. Home means...home means I want to walk alone if I feel like it, visit with my friends if I feel like it...and home means I should never, ever, **ever** be afraid_.

In that moment Kagome made a decision, though she wasn't entirely aware of it. She was a strong personality and a strong will, accompanied by a strong and vital power. In choosing to make _this place_ her home, she made a choice also for all those other things to come true.

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! I didn't think I'd finish this chapter today, but...for some reason watching Darth Vader become a Lego inspired me to write :p Annnyway...Coming Soon: Sango and Miroku Kick Some Ass...Namely, Inuyasha's Ass, Although He Might Not Remember His Name Afterward, Or Perhaps He Will Only Wish He Doesn't. And Also Smut (But None For Inuyasha).

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	200. Chapter 200

Drabble Collection Alpha

CC

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Trust_

_Once upon a time, there was a priestess who was loved by an Inu-hanyou._

At the edge of Edo's furthest fields, Sango sat alone on a rock, not minding the night wind or the rain it spit at her.

_The priestess returned his affections, but their love was not meant to be._

Her thoughts were caught up in the old story, which had rewritten itself now with an unrecognizable ending.

_Reborn, the priestess returned to the side of the hanyou – and then darkness grew, to walk between them all the days of their lives._

Darkness named Sesshomaru; darkness in the shape of a youkai lord.

_The priestess was a woman, not only a priestess...and her heart was weak from long torment at the hands of the unfaithful hanyou. _

In Sango's thoughts lingered two images that hesitated on altering her world forever: first, Kagome, in the moment she had returned from Sesshomaru, bleeding, broken...broken in a way Sango had never seen a woman break before. Second was the bruise that Kagome still bore; the bruise that had come from Inuyasha's hand.

_But woman or priestess, she was never meant to belong to a demon. A demon cannot love; a demon cannot love!_

* * *

><p>That night, Sesshomaru brought Kagome away from the blood and death that he had strewn across her chambers, and brought her to his own rooms, deep in the <em>shiro<em>. They were rooms with the mountain at their back, rooms that bore the cool, sweaty feeling stone garners before a storm.

Kagome hesitated at the door; she had not yet entered this far into the Inner Palace, had not yet seen his own chamber. If she had guessed, she would have thought that his rooms would be the epitome of elegance – crimson and gold silk, fine woods, rare ornaments...

But there was none of that; his room was a den, hollowed from the side of the mountain. The walls were rough, dark stone; the only furniture was a desk against one wall and a series of long, many-paneled screens.

Everything else was furs, furs spread so deep and soft that the whole floor was like one enormous bed. It was the den of the Inu; she could see that immediately -

And in her knowledge, she felt suddenly, foolishly safe. Almost as soon as she had stepped onto them, Sesshomaru was on her, his mouth demanding in its kisses, his hands pulling at her clothes, parting them, reaching for soft skin.

She gasped at first, and then laughed when he tumbled her onto the furs – and then gasped again as he brought his kisses down her body, growling, lapping at her skin. He was insistent, more than he had been since the very beginning – and for the first time, she heard words from him in a moment of passion that ignited the fragile embers of her feeling.

"Kagome, beautiful Kagome...what is it I am feeling, if it is not love...?"

* * *

><p>Sango was deep in thought when Miroku found her; it was getting dark, and the air was rich with a youkai presence.<p>

"Sango."

Her eyes were empty, her face hollow; she met his gaze with the shadow of a smile.

"I think...I think we made a mistake, Miroku."

He sat beside her, heavily.

"I know. I know, Sango...I know."

She eyed him sharply out of the corner of her eye.

"Have you been thinking about -"

"Inuyasha. Yes. And his brother – and Kagome, our Kagome..."

"Poor Kagome. Can we...save her, Miroku?"

He looked at her, his eyes wide with surprise.

"You think that she wants to be saved?"

* * *

><p>Sesshomaru had not meant for Kagome to hear his words, his question – he had not even meant to speak aloud - but even he was not capable of complete control in such moments of passion. She said nothing to make him aware, nothing to break the moment of stillness, fragile and shining, that had come to rest over her heart.<p>

_What is it, if not love? What is it...what is it? Nothing?_

But it was not _nothing_, and she knew it.

For the first time, Kagome did more than submit to Sesshomaru's carnal cravings – she accepted them, responded to them, let her own sensual desires run loose. Her hands roamed his skin openly, possessively. She answered his growls with lustful murmurs, reached for the heavy hardness that pressed against her thigh and laughed at his groan, laughed even as the liquid gold shimmer of his eyes darkened to crimson.

"Sesshomaru...I want you, Sesshomaru..."

* * *

><p>Sango's answer had to be saved for another time. The youkai presence that had haunted the village as the night grew darker had become a figure that walked towards them slowly, with halting, limping steps.<p>

Both of them recognized the shape – it was distinctive, even as a starlit silhouette.

Sango lifted Hiraikotsu with white-knuckled fingers.

Miroku's fingers sought out a binding sutra in his sleeve.

A voice hailed them out of darkness.

"It is you two – I thought it was. Are you -"

Hiraikotsu came whipping out into the darkness with a shout of effort from Sango. Her aim was true; their foe was pinned to the ground by the weight of her weapon.

"What are you doing – what the _hell_! It's _me_ -"

Miroku's eyes narrowed. His hands reappeared from within his sleeves; he produced a sutra inscribed with a Word of Fire.

"We know, Inuyasha."

With precise aim, Miroku threw his sutra, and then followed with a whipping motion of his staff. He caught the sacred writing and pinned it to the exposed skin at Inuyasha's wrist. A fiery manacle crackled into life; a chain snaked from it, and then sank into the earth, holding Inuyasha's left arm to the ground.

He followed it with the same movement, quickly, this time to the right.

"This is for the sake of Kagome's broken trust, Inuyasha!"

* * *

><p>AN: 1000 words; trust grows...and breaks. Sango's suspicions are to be enumerated...forthwith! This chapter is dedicated in all its 200-y glory to Theia, for the most awesomely monstrous review EVER :D

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	201. Chapter 201

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCI

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Trust (II)_

Sesshomaru let his hands slide up the warm curves of Kagome's body as he settled himself between her thighs, tasting the soft skin, dragging his fangs across her paleness, delighting in her gasps and shivers.

She had learned quickly that this was one of his favorite pleasures, one of the things he loved most to do to her. It had quickly become one of the things she loved most, too. She loved the tingling pressure of his claws and fingers, spreading her wet flesh to his view; she loved the hungry gleam in his eyes, when she dared look down her body and meet his crimson gaze.

She loved the long, slow lapping of his tongue, and the quick, rapid flicker; more than all these things, she loved the heat and pleasure that overwhelmed all her senses when he wrapped his lips around the bud he had teased and massaged it in perfect circles with the rough, flat softness of his tongue.

All the sensations were brighter this time; her thoughts were full of the things he had said to her, the things he had done for her – the growing proofs that he cared. That he...loved.

_Loved._

* * *

><p>AN: The last 200 words of Trust, which was really one 1200 word section but...I like it better this way :p Onward to more beating up of Inuyasha, and more smuts!

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	202. Chapter 202

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Fairytale_

Kagome's thought brought the burning inside her to new heights, and she tightened her fingers in Sesshomaru's hair and rolled her body beneath his tongue.

She cried out in a high, sweet tone when the feeling overwhelmed her, and spread her legs wider when he drew himself up over her and thrust deep into her body. There was a wilder passion in him tonight, a more potent need. She thought it was the feeling that moved him, the vulnerable emotions that he had so briefly exposed -

But she was not yet accustomed to her youkai lover, or she would have known that he had motives deeper than feeling.

There was the blood he had spilled for her sake, the awareness of her new possessiveness; there was her own wanton response, the eager way she reached for him, the honesty in all her moans – and there was the lure of her scent, which had strengthened his desire past enduring the last few days.

In that moment, _reason_ did not matter - just the clenching of wet, tight flesh around him, the sound of heavy breathing and her endless moans.

That night, for the second time, he stayed and slept beside her, holding her tightly as she shifted and turned to fit more snugly in his arms.

Once, she woke and turned to look at his sleeping features in the moonlight streaming through her window. His face was calmer than she had ever seen it, smooth and untroubled; his lips were barely parted, and she could feel his breath on her cheek.

A smile crept across her lips; she was asleep again before the expression could fade.

* * *

><p>Inuyasha's growls and snarls were enough to wake half the village of Edo, but though he pulled at the bindings, the sutras were strong...and he was weak, still healing, the strength of his body and youki both at low ebb.<p>

Still, Miroku saw the flicker of scarlet wildness waiting at the corners of Inuyasha's eyes, and stood silently, contemplating a third and more powerful binding. It was Sango who stalked forward, an unsheathed sword in her hand, murder in her eyes. She pressed the blade against Inuyasha's throat hard enough that he was forced to still himself completely.

"Tell me why I shouldn't kill you, Inuyasha! Tell me why I shouldn't do to you what you tried to do to _her_!"

Inuyasha's eyes grew instantly round. A number of things flashed across his face – guilt and relief, fear and anger. The confirmation was there, easy to read; Inuyasha had, indeed, done something horrible.

But Sango would not be content until she knew exactly what he had done; until she knew all the reasons that Kagome's fairytale had been so completely destroyed.

"Tell me what you said to her, Inuyasha! Tell me what you said to the woman you were supposed to love and protect – tell me what you _did_ to her!"

Miroku reached forward a restraining hand, squeezed her shoulder, but she shook him off with an angry glare. The blade of her sword pressed tighter against Inuyasha's throat, drew a thick welling of crimson to the surface; she was glaring at the hanyou with a wild-eyed hatred Miroku had not seen in her since the day she attacked Inuyasha; the day she had come to them thinking Inuyasha had brought her kin to their deaths.

There was madness in her gaze, and it bothered him; it was the madness of a hate he had seen many times before, directed at youkai whether they deserved it or not. Suddenly, he was glad that Shippou had gone with Kagome to...wherever she had gone. In this mood, Sango was a danger to anything youkai...to any demon, no matter how harmless, or how vulnerable.

It was a difference of belief, he thought. Youkai, though not human and often deadly, still possessed souls; this was a teaching of the Buddha. But Sango, he knew, did not think that way. She saw only death in demon faces – the practice of her trade and the protection of mankind from the most dangerous of beasts.

_Inuyasha...what have you done? You have not wounded only Kagome, Inuyasha... _

* * *

><p>AN: 700 words, woosh! Some smuts and some smacking...more smacking coming next chapter, and then Kagome will find out what is it that's been planned for her while she was busy being smutty. Bwaha. Onward!

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	203. Chapter 203

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCIII

Prompt From DDN 3/3/12

_Blood_

Sango's anger clouded everything – all thoughts, all feelings except the rage and the pain. She had wanted so much for her new family, had predicted the future almost nightly in bath-time conversations and sleeping-bag whispers with Kagome.

"_We'll be brides and mothers together – he'll come around soon, you'll see – I don't think you should worry, Kagome..."_

Standing here, looking down at him, the memory of Kagome's bruised face fresh in her mind, Sango could hardly bear to think of her own words. The memory was red as blood, red as fury.

_Inuyasha will protect you._

_Inuyasha will love you...Save you..._

_Inuyasha will..._

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words; I have two more DDN chapters, and then I've got to look up the rest of the prompts and see what happens. Onward :D

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	204. Chapter 204

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCIV

Prompt From DDN 3/3/12

_Bittersweet_

The pain in Sango's face finally got through to Inuyasha, and drove down all his anger at their treatment of him. He deserved it – deserved every moment of pain, every accusation, deserved to be bound and collared like a beast. It was bitter; the flavor of all his nightmares distilled into this moment of abandonment and utter pain.

And there was sweet – because behind it all there was a voice of conscience and guilt that knew – _knew_ – that it was only the vengeance of Sango being enacted here, because Kagome would never want it. Would never permit it. Not even now, when he had treated her worse than his worst foe.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words; I think I have...one more chapter ready. Yes, I do, I do! Yay!

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	205. Chapter 205

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCV

Prompt From DDN 3/3/12

_Lime_

For a third time, in a voice that she did not even recognize as her own, Sango accosted Inuyasha for the information that she so desperately needed...and did not want.

"What did you do to Kagome, Inuyasha!"

And, because there was no worse punishment he could think of, Inuyasha began to speak. He enunciated every insult, every curse he had heaped upon Kagome. He told of the terrible comparison he had made; of the threat of his claws...his sword.

Quieter still, sour acid in the wounds, he told them of the barrier of power..._Sesshomaru's_ power...that had protected Kagome from _him..._and from Tetsusaiga, which had deserted him.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...and I lied. I actually had two more chapters ready, so one more after this and then a pause for frantic typing :D

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	206. Chapter 206

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCVI

Prompt From DDN 3/3/12

_Sky_

"I don't...know where it is now. Maybe...Sesshomaru took it. He took Kagome – no. Kagome _went_ _with_ _him_. I haven't seen her since then, she – I don't think...I should see her again. I'll...just hurt her. She could be happy...if...he..."

And then he felt silent, and sat up on his knees, ignoring the flaming manacles that smoked at his wrists in favor of the sprawling, star-struck sky.

It would be the last thing he saw for quite some time. Sango's fist struck his chest, a single, powerful blow. Any other day, it would not have even staggered Inuyasha; any other day, he would have laughed at her human strength.

But this day, she struck the terrible wound that Sesshomaru had opened through his flesh, that had not yet had time to truly heal, and drew back her fist covered in blood.

Red ran in rivulets from beneath Inuyasha's clothes. Sango's took a half step back, and then caught Inuyasha in the temple with a spinning kick. The force of her blow drove him down against the ground.

Inuyasha coughed, brought bloody foam to his lips, and lay where she left him, panting. He heard the patter of rain falling over him, near him...but he felt nothing; not cold, not wetness, not pain.

Or perhaps only pain.

Overhead, he watched the clouds draw close over the stars, blocking the night from the view of his one half-open eye. He felt, dimly, the pale shadow of further blows rocking his numb flesh – heard, more dimly still, the sound of Miroku's voice calling out -

"Sango! Sango, enough...you're going to kill him!"

Then there was darkness, an end to sound and to sensation. A part of him hoped that he could die...except...how could he seek forgiveness then, from the only one who mattered?

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words...poor Sango. She really has no idea what she's doing right now, but...that is the price of blind rage. This has had an extra two hundred words added since it was first posted last night :p Bonus!

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	207. Chapter 207

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCVII

Prompt From Syn's Evil Bonus Prompts

_Solatium_

A step behind her, Miroku couldn't tell if Sango was aware that Inuyasha had come to them hovering at the edge of death; if she had seen that he already carried a mortal injury before she had inflicted further wounds upon him.

What he did not know, could not have understood, was that Sango would not have cared even if she had noticed. What was Inuyasha's death, compared to Kagome's pain? The loss she had suffered, the family that had been taken from her by treachery, had marked her forever. She clung to Kagome as she had clung to her brother - even as he teetered at the edge of destruction, controlled by their enemy, his hands stained by many evil acts.

She had made a decision – to protect her new _family_, brother, lover, sister...future sons.

"Sango! Sango, you have to stop – Sango! You know Kagome would never want this!"

It was only the last of Miroku's words that she actually heard. It was a hurtful thing to say, and he knew it, but it was also the only thing he was certain would stop her.

Inuyasha was too far gone in guilt and agony to fight for himself even with words.

Sango was tightly wound within herself , her fear and her disgust deeply mingled with anger and distress; she knew, even as Inuyasha had, that Miroku spoke the truth. But it wasn't _fair_. It wasn't _right_.

"Miroku -"

"Sango."

His voice was gentle, calming, a caress on her name, but that was not enough. He saw that, and repeated himself, the words delicate this time, and all the more damning for it.

"Kagome wouldn't want this. Not now, not ever. She _wouldn't_, Sango."

She whipped around to face him, and he saw tears streaming down her cheeks, mingling with the rain.

"But she should! She _should_! It's not...it's not _fair_, Miroku! _He_ took her from us – just as much as his_ brother_ did."

Miroku sensed the breaking dam of her feelings, and stepped forward. She turned, and almost fell into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Blood stained his purple robe, made the black beneath it glisten.

Sango wept for Kagome, and for herself, and for the friendship that lay discarded and bloody on the grass five feet away. She wept for the days she could have cried, and didn't – for the days she should have cried, and wouldn't.

But when she had cried enough, Sango stood, and wiped the wetness from her face, ignoring the new wetness that poured down in cooling streams from the moonlit sky. She had taken blood as compensation for her suffering; pain to pay the price of her solatium.

She gripped Miroku's hand tight in cold, bloodstained fingers, and then turned with hard eyes to regard Inuyasha's unconscious body.

"We should bring him back to Kaede, Sango."

For a moment more she stared, silent.

"Yes. For Kagome. But I will never trust him again. Never. _ Never_."

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! I've been saving these prompts...bwaha. Onward we go!

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	208. Chapter 208

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCVIII

Prompt From IDDN 3/8/12

_Desinence_

Miroku felt a chill pass over him as she spoke. The shadows of the night seemed suddenly full of vengeful, prowling shades.

He sensed a murmur of ill-omen and bad tidings, and then shook it off and bent by Inuyasha's side. Carefully, avoiding the worst of the wounds he could see, Miroku lifted the hanyou onto his back, and did his best to ignore the inhuman heat of the blood that soaked through his robes and wet his skin.

It wasn't far to Kaede's house, but Miroku felt Inuyasha's life slipping away with every step, trickling down his back, pooling on the ground beneath their feet. The old miko was awake, standing at her door with a broom idle in one hand. It clattered to the ground as she took in the sight before her eyes – Sango spattered in blood, Miroku covered in the continuing flow from Inuyasha.

Worse than the wounds, whose like she had seen before, was the termination of compassion in Sango's face – the loss written there; the ending.

Only Miroku seemed to show any concern for the companion they had fought and bled beside for years...and even he turned away, consigning the hanyou to Kaede's care.

* * *

><p>AN: A surprise IDDN...and so surprise chapters appear! Onward with the coming of the next prompt! On another note, I just realized that Alpha has almost 500 reviews which is...just...WOW. No fic I have posted anywhere has that many reviews on a single site, so...this chapter is dedicated to all reviewers everywhere! Long may you live :D

Please Review!


	209. Chapter 209

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCIX

Prompt From IDDN 3/8/12

_Deucedly_

That night, Miroku was surprised by a visitor in the darkness. He made ready to steel himself and shoe away whatever woman had come to him – it would not be the first time – but he found himself lost for words when the woman in front of him lifted her face.

"Sango! Sango, you..."

"I have been thinking, Miroku. I have been thinking about the things that have been taken from me, and the things I want. And I've decided – I can't let anything else I want be taken away. I know, though...I know...that the decision means nothing!"

He made a motion as if to soothe her, comfort her, but she shook her head violently and leaned close to him. Her yukata gapped invitingly, drawing his eyes downward, but he forced himself to look her in the face.

"Miroku – Miroku, the kami could take you from me too. And I've never even had you – not as a wife, and not as a woman."

He swallowed, sensing the direction her words were going.

"Miroku..."

Her voice was a drawn-out shadow, smooth and lustrous as the night.

"Let me be yours, Miroku..."

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words; these prompts are great! So...we move into a little interlude with Sango and Miroku, but I bet NONE of you can guess what's going to happen. :D

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	210. Chapter 210

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCX

Prompt From IDDN 3/8/12

_Persnickety_

Sango didn't wait for Miroku to answer her; his daily habits, his lecherous comments and attitude, had convinced her that it would be unnecessary. Her hands dropped to her obi, and pulled the loosely tied fabric away and off. Her yukata hung open and parted, and she saw Miroku's eyes dart down at her body, taking in the slice of pale skin that showed - the curve of her breasts, the smooth tautness of her belly, the shadow nestled between her thighs.

And then she saw him look away, his eyes searching the room for anything else to look at, anything else to occupy his attention. The anger that rose in her was just as irrational as her desire had been; she did not recognize the emotional distress that was prodding her onward, moving her into actions she would never have taken in a saner mood.

But all she could see was the eyes turned away from her, the guilty desire on Miroku's face.

"Am I not good enough, not beautiful enough, not_ woman_ enough? Are you too _picky_ for me, Miroku? Am I not up to your usual standard?"

She cast aside her yukata and stood before him naked.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words! One more chapter of these two, perhaps two...and then back to Sesshomaru, who's "got some 'splainin to do!" Onward!

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	211. Chapter 211

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXI

Prompt From IDDN 3/8/12

_Viscid_

Sango turned before Miroku, displaying her body. She cupped a breast in one hand, and let the other drift down to brush lightly against her thighs. Her gaze was intent on him; he couldn't avoid looking at her now, either because he didn't want to insult her or because his eyes were no longer obeying his own will.

She saw him swallow again, a harsh convulsion of his throat – and then, with a control she had never expected from him, Sango watched him get up on his knees, and pick up her yukata, and stand to drape it over her shoulders. His hands trembled, so close to her naked skin; she felt a shiver, goosebumps rising in the places where his fingers brushed her flesh.

"You don't want to do this, Sango. Not now; not for this reason. You are the most desirable woman I have ever seen, the only woman I really want – but I can't take you like this. I _won't_."

His hands were gentle as he smoothed fabric into place and tied her obi for her – properly, this time. She stared at him, wide-eyed, almost expressionless.

"Goodnight, Sango."

She fled, and left Miroku alone in the dark with his unquenched desire. His right hand found his erection, and he lay back with a moan, letting his fingers work the rigid flesh.

The vision of Sango, naked before him, posing, floated before his eyes; viscid white spilled onto his robes. Half-ashamed, panting in the aftermath of his pleasure, Miroku turned on his side and tried to steady himself for sleep.

In the morning, there would be hell to pay – he was sure of it.

But what else could he have done? If he had taken her, if he had let her do what she wanted...both of them would have regretted it forever.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words this time...technically above the word limit but I'm not posting it in chat, so who cares? Poor Miroku...at least he got off :p And there will indeed be consequences...though for now, we move back to the Shiro, and Sesshomaru...and the Explaining. Lots of explaining.

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	212. Chapter 212

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXII

Prompt From GMDDN 3/10/12

_Magic_

Kagome woke to something that seemed strange to her - extra warmth, pressure behind her, a fluttering of breeze against the back of her neck...

It came clear in a startled moment what – _who_ – it was.

"Sesshomaru..."

Her voice was soft, in case he was still sleeping, but she need not have worried. It was not fatigue that had kept him in bed with her; he had woken with the dawn, had bathed and attended to the affairs of council that he had neglected in order to stay through the night with Kagome.

He had returned and found her curled around the empty space his body had occupied, a crescent of pale, peeking skin. It was so easy to slide back in beside her that he had not resisted the temptation; she needed her rest, especially with the confrontation that awaited her.

Still – he might be a patient being, but he was also a lustful one. Now that she was awake, he saw no value in the virtue; instead, he leaned closer, breathed warmth against her neck with quiet words.

"Good morning, mate."

Her shudder was visible. Sesshomaru pressed his lips against her jaw and trailed his kisses downward, pulling the furs away from her body as he went. His mouth sought her breasts and then her nipples, teeth nipping gently, pulling the tight flesh with sharp little tugs.

She encouraged him with moans and with her hands, pushing the rest of the furs away, parting her legs, pressing the heat and wetness of her body against the rigid thickness she could feel prodding her thigh.

And then was still, penetrated just by his words.

"So eager, mate...but not yet."

His voice was rough sex and magic; she burned.

_Burned_.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words...of smuts. Because GMDDN happened, so...why not? :D

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	213. Chapter 213

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXIII

Prompt From GMDDN 3/10/12

_Reward_

Sesshomaru's hands moved quickly down Kagome's body, skimming over her skin and then flickering across the sensitive nub hiding in her soft folds. He had learned many things that pleased her, but he liked best the sounds she made when he tried unexpected things. He used his fingers now, squeezing and then slowly stroking, licking his lips when she whimpered, twisted, groaned.

He watched the deep crimson flush spread across her breasts and outward, tinting her skin like a dusky rose, and felt the twitching in the muscles of her thighs that told him she was hovering at the edge of her climax. Deftly, he slowed the movements of thumb to slow, maddening circles, and reached up his other hand to tease the peak of her nipples.

"You have waited well, Kagome. Tell me what you desire – I will it give to you, a reward for all your...suffering."

As he spoke he leaned close and let his breath drift over her quivering flesh, reached out with his tongue and lapped quickly, teasingly. But her hands reached down and grasped at his shoulders, pulling at him, drawing him up until the heat of his shaft was poised tauntingly, barely inside her.

Try as she might, she could not force him closer or deeper – so instead she moved herself, wriggling down, sliding her hips up and _up_ until she could feel the whole hard length of him buried deep in her body. She let out a long, contented moan and then settled back against bed, savoring the ripples of pleasure...and then felt his hand on her chest, holding her down, and could not move at all.

"You still have not told me what you want, Kagome..."

She held her breath for a long moment, fighting with her own desires.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words! One more smut chapter in the works, and then we'll see if Sesshomaru's _pleasant awakening_ for Kagome does any good in the face of the things he has to tell her. Bwaha! I dedicate this trio of smut chapters to Theia...because she's 98.7% of the reason I wrote them. :p

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	214. Chapter 214

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXIV

Prompt From GMDDN 3/10/12

_Sweat_

It was not the first time Sesshomaru had made such a demand of her – asking that she speak her desire, make wanton words. But still, it was no easier; not when this was still so new to her, not with the memory of a recent encounter and Yoko's admonitions still fresh in her memory.

Anyone could walk in, at any time – a councilor, a courtier, a servant, a soldier. Sesshomaru might turn and speak to them over his shoulder, thrusting inside her, driving that deep, deep pleasure – he might ignore them, and keep that sensual focus, his fingers thrumming between their bodies, his thrusts hard and deep and desperate...

She let out a groan of pure need.

His tongue followed a drop of sweat as it slid across her collarbone and down across the heaving swell of her breasts, then curled around her nipple and laved it in the heat of his mouth. A sharp moan escaped her, and then the rush of words he had been waiting for, the words that always came with her complete surrender – even the very first time.

"Please...please, inside me, I want – I want – oh please, please, _please_ all of you _inside_ me -"

Sesshomaru pushed forward, slowly, feeling the soft flesh part and grasp at his rigid intrusion, drawing him deeper and deeper. His eyes closed to gilded slits; he basked in pleasures that assaulted all his senses - sweet sound and scent of miko, smooth, rippling sensation, taste of salt and sex and sugar – a vision of wanton purity, spread wet and willing across his furs.

He gave her what she wanted, then, drove hard and deep, over and over and over; shook cries and moans and screams from her, again and again and again.

A/N: 300 words...again. :D Finished just in time, too, cause now I have to go do errands...but I shall contemplate the method of Sesshomaru's explanation, and just how much he wants to tell her while I'm gone.

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	215. Chapter 215

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXV

Prompt From Silverdrache: A Word

_Rummage_

Kagome did not mention the words she had overheard; neither did Sesshomaru, not knowing he had spoken them. Outwardly, nothing could really change between them...but in that private moment, alone in the afterglow of pleasure and union, Kagome surprised Sesshomaru with a stunning warmth of smiles – with something open and charged in her scent, like emotional lightning.

She became more beautiful to him still, if that was possible; more beautiful, more desirable. That most significant hint of caring throbbed in his chest like the blade of some terrible weapon, but he refused to name it to himself again. Though he knew, certainly, what it was, it was not something he had experience with; it was not something he had ever thought he would experience.

Who would have suspected? Who would have thought?

Sesshomaru-dono, Lord of the West - in love.

The thought brought a sour expression to his face – until he heard Kagome laugh, saw her smile – felt the warmth of her hand on his cheek, the sweet summoning of her words, softer now and sweeter since she had learned how easily he could hear her.

"Sesshomaru, Sesshomaru – you look so confused. Is something wrong, mate?"

He was struck as if by an arrow, as if by a spear.

_Mate_, she called him. _Mate_...and what was that he heard in her voice, what was that – not a sound, but a change; was it passion? Was it acceptance, finally, of the things she could not change? Was it _more_ than that, was it -

But the thought would not form; he could not let it crystallize even though the awareness of it had spread through his whole body like a sparkling flame. To crush it, prevent it, hold it back, he said the only thing he could think of to explain away his discomfort.

"My mother will arrive tomorrow, Kagome. She is coming to _meet_ you."

In a single instant, Kagome's body shifted from utterly relaxed to completely tense. He rummaged through the scents springing from her body – fading arousal, growing fear...and anger.

"She – you – how do you _know _that_,_ Sesshomaru?"

He eyed her seriously.

"Shizuka and I arranged it. It is best...to get this over with, and move on to more important things."

"More...important...she's your _mother_, Sesshomaru!"

His face settled into grim lines.

"Yes...she is. It is...most unfortunate."

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! The last of the random word prompts that I received in reviews, so this chapter is dedicated dually to silverdrache and to Lilli – the power of prompts and the power of whip! Combined! Next chapter, Sesshomaru reveals some of what Inuyasha has seen to Kagome – the specter of his past. I wonder...what will it seem like from Sesshomaru's point of view...and how did those early days truly affect him?

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	216. Chapter 216

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXVI

Prompt From Syn's Evil Bonus Prompts

_Thanatopsis_

Kagome stared at Sesshomaru with wide eyes. She was angry and confused – angry, because he had kept this from her and now she had very little time to prepare for an important meeting. Confused, because he had reverted to the cold and featureless mask that she had first grown to fear. All the heat of his gaze was quenched, the flowing honey of his eyes hidden behind an icy shield. She wasn't sure why his mother should be such a touchy subject, unless...

"It's because of me, isn't it? That you're so unhappy, that you don't want to...show me anything. It's because I'm human and you think...you're ashamed that I'm human, I should have...I _did_ know, but I hoped that it might not matter any more, or eventually, or -"

She babbled her fears at him, senselessly. His eyes widened very slightly; he leaned close to her, pressing her down against the furs.

"Mate. I am _not_ ashamed of you. I _was _irritated by you...and...confused. But you know I -"

He halted, and Kagome saw the warmth well up in him and watched him turn it away. She smiled just a little, her anger dissolving.

"Sesshomaru..."

He spoke abruptly, silencing her.

"I do not care for her- my mother. I never have."

She eyed him in surprise, and he saw it, scented it.

"You thought something different?"

Kagome looked away from him and shivered. His quick change of subject left a dull edge on the warmth that had been growing in her. Sesshomaru pulled thick furs up and tucked them around her, but she still did not meet his eyes again.

"I just thought...the way you respect your father, you might -"

"My father. My _father_ and my _mother_..."

And then she _stared _ at him, because she had never heard such scorn and bitterness in his voice before.

"I respected my father for his power; that is all. But my mother...for her, I have not even that. For her...many times, I have contemplated death for her, and the many ways that I might choose to inflict it."

"Why – would you -"

He spoke briskly, not in sharing tones or with any warmth, not seeking compassion though the history he related was horrible.

"Of my time as a pup – a child, you would say – I remember only pain and blood. My third name day, my mother brought me out to the training grounds, and bade my guards attack me. When I did not destroy them, when I was not a prodigy of power – she was..._disappointed_."

His eyes stared straight ahead into the darkness.

"For that disappointment, I paid with my youth; twelve years of violence and a terrible sacrifice. I was trained to kill, to torture, to maim, to destroy. I was trained to the be the noble son of a noble house; to be _Sesshomaru_.

"Every day was the same...and then I met Yuugao."

A/N: 500 words! I love these prompts...mmm anyway, next chapter we learn how Sesshomaru gained such a friend, and how she managed to live as such as long as she did. Didn't think I'd just mention her once, did you? Bwahaha... Onward!

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	217. Chapter 217

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXVIII

Prompt From Syn's Evil Bonus Prompts

_Ode_

Kagome considered for a long moment, and then realized that he had left the statement hanging so that she would _have _to ask; he had made the question completely inevitable.

"Yuugao – who was she?"

Sesshomaru closed his eyes and sank back against the furs. Sensing something of his earlier warmth returning to him, Kagome leaned back into her place against his side, pressed the palm of her left hand flat against his chest, measuring his heartbeat. His voice was a measured cadence, an exaltation.

"Yuugao was my friend; the first...almost the last. She was the head of the garrison guard that was responsible for this place when I was small. The day of my birth, my father left and did not return for twenty years; I was grown in body, if not in mind, when he returned here and I met him for the first time.

"It was Yuugao who taught me, who made it possible for me to survive the_ training_ my mother provided for me...but she did it with caring, and a softness that is not common in youkai. She would not let me hide behind my title – neither for anger nor for tears. She endured my fury and when those moments came that _I_ could not endure -"

Kagome sensed the shrug in his voice, though his body remained still as stone.

"She was there for me. She was not afraid of my mother, and she was not afraid of me, though she should have been. Though he far surpassed her in power and skill, she did not fear my father, either – though this I heard only secondhand, and never saw myself. There was no one else willing, no guard, no family, no pack mate – no one else will to be my companion. No one else to play games that were not of war; no one else to teach me hunting lore, the way to carry a weapon, the way to scent out a foe.

"And then...one day..."

A shiver wracked him, uncontrollable, head to toe.

"I killed her."

He repeated it as if even now he could not believe it.

"I killed her...I tore her apart. It was the Inu – the strength and the power that I had not yet learned to control. It was not my intention, but I couldn't prevent it – and that day, that day my mother proved that she had no heart. I changed – became the beast, the Inu, roused to fury beyond all borders of control. I would have killed her, if she was anyone else; only the thought of my father's rage, the hint in the back of the beastly thoughts, the knowledge that I was not yet Alpha – only that restrained me."

He let out a long, slow breath.

"It will not restrain me now, Kagome. Yuugao's death is on her hands – even with words, I will not let her harm you."

A/N: 500 words! A bit of history, a bit of angst...and that reminds me. This chapter is dedicated to whoever nominated this fic for the Feudal Association Awards (in the angst category) cause...that's just awesome! So goooo person! And

Please Review!


	218. Chapter 218

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXVIII

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Ensorcel_

Kagome was both warmed and frightened by his words.

"The time is long past when I would make allowances for anyone who strikes against what is mine, Kagome. When she arrives, she will accuse you of everything she can think of – of insolence, of arrogance, of witchery and black intentions. She will see only your humanity and nothing else; she will see a toy, and in my unwillingness to _dispose_ of you she will see weakness."

Her stared at her with a serious gaze.

"Do not think that you can charm her with your bright smiles, mate."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! Get ready...for a whamma-bamma lot of updates, cause guess what? DDN, that's what. And it was awesome and mighty and all sorts of STUFF. This chapter dedicated to Theia, for her awesome prompt :D

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	219. Chapter 219

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXIX

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Comminute_

There was warning in Sesshomaru's voice, and it sent a chill thrumming deep into Kagome's body

"On the surface, she is a softer looking creature; inside, she is darker than your first, worst dream of me. The slightest hesitation, a single sign that you are not ready to take what must be yours – take it, possess it, command it – she will crush you. Destroy you. Dismantle you and all your dreams."

Distance entered his eyes and for a moment there was silence.

"Sesshomaru? Sesshomaru, I..."

"These are truths, Kagome. I will not deny them."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! Not much to say except...Onwards! This chapter goes to Hat for her awesome prompt!

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	220. Chapter 220

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXX

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Prestidigitation_

The fear that wound through Kagome's veins in the next moments was fear alive in way she had never known – a trickster fear; fear a magician; fear wild and loose like a lightning bolt, like fire.

She had heard – she had been told – that terror was a blade of ice. She had agreed, had walked along the edge of that blade many times, feeling out her path into the past.

Now, though...

This was a different panic, and one she did not like.

She knew suddenly why Sesshomaru had kept his silence until now, and felt faintly, absurdly grateful.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! Onwards, onwards! This one's for Priestess Skye and another prompt of awesomeness :D

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	221. Chapter 221

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXI

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Baroque_

The morning of Hashiridokoro's arrival came too swiftly for any of those waiting; for Sesshomaru, whose patience and careful masks of false

candor wore thin quickly – for Kagome, who jittered nervously from room to room, rehearsing greetings in her mind and doing her best to ignore their probable futility.

From a high place he looked down and saw her waiting with her entourage, and for a moment felt nothing but disgust. Her robes, her hair, the knot of her obi and the pattern of her combs – all of it was over done, too exotic, too ornate.

_Mother._

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...Onward! This one is for Demonqueen, for many awesome reviews and an awesome prompt :D

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	222. Chapter 222

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXII

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Perspicacity_

Sesshomaru felt his mother's approach as a twinge of presence demanding entrance at the edge of the island's barrier – no softness in it, no sentiment, no salutation, one great power to another. Kagome approached him closely, stood behind him grasping onto his sleeve with one hand. He was pleased that she was not trembling, that he did not scent fear -

He turned, and looked at her.

Her eyes were flat and sharp, an expression he recognized from her battle-ready days, one he had seen through violence more than once when he was among her foes.

It was fury, always flying before her arrow.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! Last one for tonight cause formatting's a bitch, to be honest...but many more are completed and will be up tomorrow or Monday depending on the power of Ham, Wine, and Chocolate. Yum...Anyway, this one's for Kayelyn, mighty be her prompt! :D

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	223. Chapter 223

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXIII

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Imprecation_

Sesshomaru held on to the memory of the lavender light that had haunted all his attempts to harm Inuyasha.

_I did not suffer, but..._

He smiled; there was nothing pleasant in it.

It was a curse.

It was an _insult_.

Sesshomaru's knowledge gave his faith in Kagome focus. It would not serve his mother, who did not know Kagome was miko.

With a crack and an explosion of gold brilliance more impressive than that which had greeted Kagome, the barrier fell. Waves of Sesshomaru's youki flashed outward across the water and sent his mother's entourage to their knees.

Quick as thought, she flashed from the shore to stand before him.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! I just realized how many of these I actually _wrote_ last night, holy monkeys...ah well! Also realized that I stupidly forgot to write down who did which prompts...so this chapter is dedicated to whoever gave us Imprecation :D

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	224. Chapter 224

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXIV

Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12

_Rhadamanthine (I)_

Sesshomaru saw immediately that his mother's eyes were _fixed _on Kagome, unbending, unwavering, rigid and inflexible as granite.

"Kagome - my mother. Mother, this is my _mate_."

He said the word viciously...and then waited. It was mere moments before all the implications of that word set in, and then she rushed at Kagome as swiftly as she could.

She rebounded from a barrier of Kagome's power with a shriek like a child's, a sound he had not heard in...ages.

It awoke harsh memories in him, and he stepped forward and looked down at her dispassionately while Kagome drew an arrow from the quiver at her back and nocked it to her bow.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...I actually wrote two chapter for this prompt, so this part I of II. Also, it comes to mind that I should say – while reading this scene, keep in mind the scene of Sesshomaru's training as a youth...This chapter is dedicated to Tenshi, for the awesome prompt – and Hat, for helping me find the people who gave the prompts!

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	225. Chapter 225

**Drabble Collection Alpha**

**CCXXV**

**Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12**

_Rhadamanthine (II)_

Kagome stood still, her eyes trained on her target and the point of her arrow. She waited for some other movement or challenge, but Sesshomaru spoke in a tone of mocking rage she had never heard from him before.

"Are those _tears_, mother?"

"_No_!"

She shouted the word at him, as if sound was truth.

Her skin was still smoking from the impact of Kagome's power.

A cruel expression claimed Sesshomaru's face, and he leaned down and lifted her by the throat. Blood streamed down into her clothes where his claws punctured her flesh; weakly, she drew in breath around his fingers.

And then he hissed a single word, a scornful judgement.

"Liar!"

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...This chapter too, I dedicate unto Tenshi...for this prompt was awesome indeed... and also to a recent reviewer of great awesomeness, missartemis88! :D Onward! To...further violence! I suppose at this point I should be deciding if I'm actually going to kill Inumama off. Haven't done that yet in a fic I suppose...::evil laughter:: Let me know what you think, and:

Please Review!


	226. Chapter 226

**Drabble Collection Alpha**

**CCXXVI**

**Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12**

_Quodlibetificate_

The scene was a mirror, a madness.

For the second time in his life, Sesshomaru flung his mother across the courtyard. She impacted against the West Tower_, _and fell limply to the dust; after a moment, she stood, and her eyes were glowing with rage.

Impassively, he stared back at her._ Dokkasou_ lit the claws of his right hand; he cracked his fingers menacingly, and Kagome winced. She had seen him make such movements once before. Had it not been for Tetsusaiga's _surprise_...

Then he spoke, and she stared open mouthed at the words he produced.

Was _this_ how youkai quibbled?

A shiver set her arrow quivering on the string.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words...and now let's see what Sesshomaru has to say, shall we? This chapter is dedicated to Lilli for an awesome prompt that I can now add to my vocabulary and scare people with!

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	227. Chapter 227

**Drabble Collection Alpha**

**CCXXVII**

**Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12**

_Runestone_

"Are you prepared, mother? If not for _youth_, I would have killed you in our battle when I was twelve. Time has changed many things...but not the greatness of my strength, over yours."

"I helped you! I saved the girl -"

"My _father_, and what he _left_ for me saved the girl. That stone – its power, its magic. _You_ did _nothing_! You sat by and told me _nothing_ of what was intended."

Kagome, watching in shock, felt her feelings turn to anger when his mother openly smirked.

"Blame your father, who died _untimely_. Blame the _woman_ and her foolish feuds – do not blame _me_!"

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! Sesshomaru is one angry puppy...and his momma is not helping, oh no she is not. Dedicated to Sarhea, for a tasty tasty prompt!

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	228. Chapter 228

**Drabble Collection Alpha**

**CCXXVIII**

**Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12**

_Beloved_

Sesshomaru took three steps forward, and sent blazing power in a wave from his sword.

The hems of her robes smoking, his mother avoided incineration by inches. Kagome stared, her fingers loose and trembling now. _He_ did not need _her_ to protect him!

_What was I thinking?_

To hold his mother off from herself, that was one thing – but in a livid battle like this, he would be better off alone, without her distracting him.

She was awed by his speed, his power, his raw, ripe, strength.

When had he drawn his sword? She hadn't _seen_ it -

"Something has recently come to my attention, mother, as I contemplated the actions of my own mate, _mere human _that she is. Certainly, _that woman_ was the cause of Father's final battle. But just as certainly, she was _not_ his mate. _You_ had that honor...and you, _mother_, surely knew when he was wounded; when he was near death!"

Mate was meant to mean beloved, and she knew it; the twisting of her smile told him so. Perhaps in _that_ she was not entirely at fault...but forgiveness would have to come in another life.

He had no time for it now.

No inclination.

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words, 100 of which I added after the fact :P This chapter is dedicated to Naq, because even though I gave the prompt in the DDN, it was totally her idea! So...onward! In a small while. Because formatting is a PIMA.

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	229. Chapter 229

**Drabble Collection Alpha**

**CCXXIX**

**Prompt From: DDN 4/7/12**

_Cynical Skin_

There was more intensity, more _strength _in his mother than Sesshomaru had expected. Despite his murderous intentions, despite rage and centuries of oppressed feeling...when he leapt forward, she dodged his strike and moved back.

Sesshomaru stalked toward her, giving her no time to recover, biting out words

"There was no great feeling between Father and I, but I did respect his strength...and I _do_ blame you. Now, when I have a mate of my own – now, when I know the power that lies in that bond, the strength, the danger. Because you _had _to have known – and you did _nothing_! You let him go to his death, when you could have stopped him; let him _die_, when you could have _saved him_."

Sesshomaru stood momentarily still, quiet, cloaked in cynical dignity.

"I, too, am guilty...because I did the same thing. Because he told me his intentions, and forbid me...but it does not matter. I should _still_ have followed. Pride stopped me."

He glowed with power, gold as a god.

"It will not stop me now; it will never stop me again. Pride..."

For an instant he gazed at Kagome.

"Pride is _worthless_."

_Compared to everything I have gained._

* * *

><p>AN: 200 words, because...I felt like it :D This chapter is dedicated to Syn, for a delicious bonus prompt! It was...crunchy. ::snickers:: Anyway, he's starting to get it now, because he's being forced to say things out loud. Next chapter: Important Things Begin To Happen!

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	230. Chapter 230

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Hero_

Sesshomaru's sword flickered, gleaming steel and gold with power, threatening his mother as he approached to within a hairsbreadth of her body and dragged her up to his bare-breathed words..

"This human – I _love_ her! She was my mate because of chance, and desire, and my brother's stupidity. She _is _my mate because she is light, and beauty; because she has given me, for the first time, _joy_. And that, I know, is love. She is my _something to protect_. And you...you, who killed my father, who killed my _youth_, who reached out to kill _her -_"

And he drew himself up, and all the rage and anguish, all the care growing in his heart - every emotion that had for a moment leapt out to howl on his face drew back, and left only stillness...and then _nothing_. He spoke...idly.

Conversationally.

"You are going to die now, mother."

For the second time, he saw terror on her face. The first time, as a mere pup, he had been unsure. Uncertain. She had still been _mother_ then, almost-not-quite-Alpha, a figure of authority and of power, even vulnerable, even in defeat. Now, though...

Now, he _smiled_.

And reveled in it.

* * *

><p>AN: So...200 words. I have decided through consultation with a most estimable companion that due to the mighty amount of fanfictions I am writing, and their various complexities, my OS's have been denied and repressed and neglected. Because of this sad truth, and the fact that I can actually make a living off OS – which I can't with fanfiction, sadly – I shall be reducing my updates to one chapter each week. I will _try _ to makes this one chapter of each fic...but we'll see how that goes . In any event, know that nothing will be discontinued or put on a real hiatus; updates for everything will just be coming at a more moderate pace.

PS: All best are off on DDN nights.

Please Review!


	231. Chapter 231

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXI

Prompt From R0o: A Word

_Undulate_

Silence moved between Sesshomaru and his mother like a living thing as he took a final step forward, power rising around him in waves of energy and light. If Kagome had heard his confession, his belief laid open, his _feeling_ – she would never have been able to speak, to step forward.

As it was, Sesshomaru had spoken too close to his mother's ear, too softly for Kagome to know. Her whole attention was distracted by the sharpening presence of violence, by the blood that already stained his mother's elaborate robes, by the memory of what Sesshomaru had told her of his vanished youth.

"_Of my time as a pup, I remember only pain and blood. Yuugao was my friend. I killed her...and that day, that day my mother proved she had no heart._"

The anger that had simmered in her then awoke and raged outward, engaging her power in a luminous display of soft pink fury. Sesshomaru stood on a terrible edge, a moment away from performing unspeakable acts – acts that would damn him, because no matter what else she was, the female he was threatening was his mother.

Ignored by both of them, Kagome began to walk forward slowly, and when she was close enough her fingers restored the arrow that had fallen away from the string of her bow into limp fingers. Just as Sesshomaru was leaping forward, poison oozing gaseous and deadly from his claws, an arrow passed before him. It whipped across the space between him and his mother with a deadly hiss and a glow of holy light.

His head whipped around, following it, and he watched fascinated as it plunged into the flesh of his mother's shoulder and began to smoke and burn.

"A kin-slayer is cursed in the deepest hell, Sesshomaru."

Kagome's voice was thin but steady, her gaze piercing, vengeful. His mother smiled, but pain weakened the expression and her taunts fell flat.

"Your weakness is so human – your morals – your _belief_ -"

Kagome continued speaking as if she hadn't heard, though her eyes flashed and a purple flame flared around her arrow.

"I won't have you hurt like that, damned like that. Not when I'm here – not when I can help it."

And then she turned back to Hashiridokoro, and Sesshomaru had the satisfaction of watching his mother tremble with pain and fear at the feet of his mate.

* * *

><p>AN 400 words! Well well, it's been a while...but it was r0o's birthday and she gave me a pair of prompts, and so...Happy Birthday to the queen of r0o's, and thusly for thee thy chapter. And yes, other peoples who are not birthdayr0o, I did say a pair of prompts. So one more is forthcoming, shortly.

Please Review!


	232. Chapter 232

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXII

Prompt From R0o: A Word

_Lob_

"I've met many others like you – youkai who believe that humans are weak and worthless – humans who believe that youkai are the source of all the evils in the world. Youkai are beings of spirit; humans are beings of flesh. That is the only difference!"

The control Kagome had over her power, the tenuous grasp that had allowed her to restrain the arrow piercing Hashiridokoro from purifying her completely, shifted and shuddered as her emotions grew wilder. Ripples of pain sprawled across Hashiridokoro's face, but she disregarded them to reach up across her body with one hand. Her fingers sizzled and smoked on contact with the blazing arrow, but she still managed to tear it free from her shoulder and toss it to the grass, where it lay smoking.

There was a smooth, soft sound, the noise of the fletching on Kagome's new arrow sliding through her fingers as she lay it on the string.

"I'm tired of fighting. I'm tired of killing, I'm tired of always have to protect everything that's precious to me because nobody can just leave well enough alone. I'm tired of being tossed around because of magic, and power, and terrible portents. I just want to learn this new life, and let that be enough!"

Sesshomaru heard her words and engraved them in his mind; they were a key to everything Kagome was and everything she wanted.

His mother pushed herself to her feet, holding her wounded shoulder, and still, disheveled and battered as she was, managed a snarling sneer.

"Never. _Never_. I will bow to no human – to no _priestess_! I will not sully my house, though my _son -_"

She spat the word as if it was the foulest curse she knew.

"Even your father was not such a fool as this! Even that stupid hanyou – even that half breed is not such a disgrace! Miko! I will _destroy_ you."

Kagome shook her head.

"No. But I'm sure you want to try."

Sesshomaru took a step backwards. In the next moment, the arrow that he knew was coming flew past him, a light so bright the pink had been ripped to red and royal purple. The gleaming head of the arrow drove deep into his mother's chest, followed by two inches of its shaft, and the flare of power that had been lobbed at her with the arrow expanded outward, reaching quickly to encompass her entire flesh.

One pair of golden eyes gleamed with agony; the other gleamed with satisfied regret.

There was much to be gained by this, of course, many new layers of prestige for Kagome's reputation...and the wrath of a powerful miko was truly a gorgeous thing to see. A flutter of heat was moving over his skin, and it had nothing to do with the aura of purity that had burst free from Kagome's control.

_Still...I had wanted to kill her myself. _

Such a pity that Kagome was so...sentimental.

* * *

><p>AN: 500 words! Sentimental. ::snickers:: See, the thing that makes this hilarious to me is that Kagome is ALWAYS purifying youkai, but anytime its anyone "meaningful" she suddenly seems to go "Oh wait, youkai are PEOPLE, we can't just KILL them when they try to MURDER us!" And that makes me go . And thus...BAMF Kagome is born, to be as pure as _humanly_ possible, while at the same time taking out the poisonous blots on the world. Oh. And getting laid reasonably (all the time) often.

Please Review!


	233. Chapter 233

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXIII

Prompt From GMDDN 5/19/12

_Entangle_

A scream of rage and agony tore itself out of Hashiridokoro's throat. It lingered on the air, burning, biting, a sound so piercing it drove Sesshomaru back. The flesh that surrounded Kagome's arrow was on fire, a fire that darted with his mother's dying heartbeats out through the entirety of her body. Her extremities went first, dissolving to dust alight with white and violet flames; a second scream shook her, and then went out like a candle.

When all that was left of her was vain dust, the remains of a wretched, deceitful bitch who had lived in the shape of a gracious lady, a hot wind swirled around them. In a whisper, so faint that Kagome's ears strained to hear it, Hashiridokoro threw her last breath, her last moment of existence, into a curse.

"_As I was deserted, so may you be!"_

The words chilled Kagome to the core, but Sesshomaru ignored them and moved smoothly to her side.

"Well done, mate. I am...glad of you."

Dismissing the pile of dust that was once his mother with the shifting of her gaze, Kagome turned her attention to Sesshomaru's ever-warming eyes.

Too swiftly, too easily, she was entangled in his new, obvious desire. It beat at her in waves, not consuming, not demanding – but that was itself intoxicating, this new power, this luxury of choice, even as she felt his want rising over her, a near-undeniable tide...

And she remembered, too, his whispered words that had caressed her flesh, her soul; an admission of feeling she would never forget.

She reached out her hand to him, and netted her fingers through his. His glance stroked her skin; wrist, shoulder, throat, lips.

"My Council will insist on a celebration, Kagome – but first...first, you must be rewarded for your conquest."

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words...too lazy to write a real author's note...but...love!

Please Review!


	234. Chapter 234

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXIV

Prompt From GMDDN 5/19/12

_Panties_

Kagome shivered, and couldn't find words to voice her surprise when he began to untie her obi, to part the heavy layers of her silk robes, pushing them over her shoulders one after another. They were standing barely ten feet from the purified ash that was all that remained of his mother; there were guards all around them, servants and visitors and the various members of Sesshomaru's court, all gathered near, all drawn by the sounds of battle or Hashiridokoro's dying screams.

In a flush of panic-driven arousal, her eyes flicked in seeming-slow motion to the eyes of all those watching - a hundred pairs of eyes, or two hundred, or more -

She was exposed to them, not even the protection of a pair of panties to cover her from their gaze. Sesshomaru was swift to lower her to the pile of robes that lay on the ground behind her, swift to cover her with his mouth, with lavish kisses and careful nips in all the most pleasing places. The thought of the eyes did not, could not leave her – but like the first time she found she didn't mind it, found the knowledge that others were watching a thrilling, pulsing pleasure.

Sesshomaru's tongue moved from her throat to her nipples, painted lines of wetness on her body that cooled in the island air and brought a flood of new sensations behind every warm shock of his mouth.

She knew what was coming, but here, before all these _guests_, the raw feeling of his tongue on her softest flesh was sudden, sharper, different. His tongue lingered, toying with the sharp pleasures that came from every flicker and flat stroke; he wrapped his lips around the bud that pleased her most, and growled for her screams.

Usually it was enough – her shaking climax, her cries, her moans – that Sesshomaru would seek a new pleasure, give in to his own desires.

This time, he did not move, did not let her go.

* * *

><p>AN: 300 words of...smut. But I'm still too lazy for a real author's note...check dokuga if you want one :P

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	235. Chapter 235

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXV

Prompt From GMDDN 7/14/12

_Salty Dog_

Kagome's moans became cries; the muscles in her thighs quivered and shook beneath Sesshomaru's hands. Heat drew itself up, up from her toes to her heels and along the back of her legs in a line of fire. He was _playing_ with her, teasing her to the edge of another climax with every lingering, lapping motion of his tongue – he tasted bittersweet fruit and salt, the edge of her power, the faint musk of his own body that had joined with her.

The balconies and grounds were thick with the scent of lust; the eyes of all those who had come to see the battle between Sesshomaru's human and Sesshomaru's mother were locked on the passionate result – Kagome's reward...and theirs, too. There were robes being unclipped and dropped all around the two moving at the center, the focus; sighs and moans began to echo from the stone, and they were no longer only Kagome's cries.

Sesshomaru felt the extra tenseness rising in Kagome's body, an extra arch to her spine, a tighter grip in her slender fingers on his shoulders.

A/N: 100 words! I must apologize, because these have been done for quite some time...I just completely forgot I hadn't posted them here. That's the bad news. The good news is that I remembered I hadn't posted them...and that there are chapters up to...244 complete! So hang on, more's a-coming, and

Please Review!


	236. Chapter 236

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXVI

Prompt From GMDDN 7/14/12

_Hurricane_

Sesshomaru lifted himself from between Kagome's legs then and leaned across her body to speak close to her ear.

"This pleases you, mate? To display the pleasure I give you? To show them, all of them, how much you are mine?"

His mouth moves down, nuzzles against her throat, plies dangerous havoc on her nerves with each hot breath, with the skimming danger of his fangs. He feels her swallow sharply, a convulsion of her throat beneath his lips; she sucks in a deep, harsh breath and does not answer. His hands caress her breasts, cover the smooth, pale flesh; his fingers pinch the hardened nubs of her nipples and he feels the wet want of her body sliding against his thigh as she wraps her legs around him and moans, louder, always louder.

He knows her body well, knows best how to tease her, how to torment her – and it pleases him in new ways to show her off and know of her enjoyment, to hear the sounds of sex, the sensual meeting of flesh, the scents of passion flowing around him and merging into a hurricane-wave.

Slowly, he enters her, slowly, feeling every moment of her body's enticing heat, the soft clenching ridges inside her, the slickness of her desire. He has worked her to an edge of all-consuming passion with his tongue, with his fingers, and now he listens to her cry out in terrible pleasure with his eyes closed to slits of bliss.

His name is on her lips in pieces; she cries out for the gods and for harder, faster, more, _more, __**more**_. For the first time since he first stole her, he gives in to the demon urge within him, pounds his hips against her in hard, sharp thrusts, digs his claws into the earth, nips at her breasts with sharp fangs, sends blood-scent, madness, into the typhoon whirl of scents-and-sensations.

A/N: More as promised! Coming soon: actual plot XP

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	237. Chapter 237

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Caladium Leaves: Great Delight_

Screams and cries echo around them; Sesshomaru knows that the reward he meant to give his mate has become more than he bargained for, a festival of rut – but he feels Kagome's body clenching tighter, ever tighter around him, hears the sharp edge of her scream tear into the air, and bares his fangs, and glories in it.

He hears other moans, other cries, whispered desires; he hears something strangled, some growl, some groan, caught up in his own throat, muffled in the softness of her breasts. She can do nothing but submit to him but still she is begging with each ragged breath, begging him, begging him...

For more.

"S-S-S...S-S'homaru! Oh – there there..._more, more __**please please please more –**_ oh. Ohhh...yes. Yes, yes -"

He loses her words then, loses them in a wail, a drawn out cry that gives out when she has no more breath in her body – and then a breath, and a cry, and a breath, and a cry -

Sesshomaru loses himself to the slick, grasping heat inside her body, the convulsions of the muscles that surround him so tightly as waves of pleasure rush through her. Her ears are open, and he sees the little shocks, the disturbances, the rocking, keening pleasure that all the sounds around them are awakening in her – but her eyes are on him, always on him, and he is pleased – more than pleased.

The cries and sighs around them effect him as much as her; he is youkai, a sensual being, a creature of lusts that define and penetrate his existence. In Kagome, he has such pleasure as he has never before known – but this is something welcome, something new. Humans he had encountered in the world were often prudish; the most basic elements of youkai society disgusted and frightened them.

Kagome, though, his Kagome...

_Perfect. And her scent, her sounds...her sounds are the most glorious of all of them. _

Her whispers, her moans, are as precious to him as her screams; she wraps her legs around his back, reaches her arms around his shoulders, presses her breasts against his chest. His own groan rises to meet her voice, and Kagome feels the pulse of his erection, feels him growing harder, larger inside her, and then the shudder of his body, the spurt of liquid heat that adds to her own.

* * *

><p>AN: 400 words! Well well well...smut. The last chapter of smut for now, actually. Hehe. Had some issues writing this because I actually just realized that...I...um...kind of abandoned the plot to smut? But I found it again finally today, in the process of remembering that Inuyasha is half dead again, Sango and Miroku are having difficulties, and Rin and Shippou haven't been mentioned in...well...ages. Heh. So...more soon, and let's see if I can get back on schedule, hmm?

Please Review!


	238. Chapter 238

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Hyacinth: Rashness_

Days passed, and the Autumn rains grew heavy, sent slow-flowing streams lashing across the landscape, flooded rivers past their boundaries and wilded the sea. While Sesshomaru put the finishing touches on the feasts and ceremonies for the festival at which he would present his mate, while Kagome read Izayoi's words and slept and woke to Sesshomaru's hands, while Rin and Shippou learned and danced between light and darkness, learned _sister_ and _brother – _while Inuyasha lay in Kaede's care, hovering still at the border between life and death...

Miroku avoided Sango, avoided her wrath, avoided her apologies – avoided, avoided, avoided, and then, finally, found himself caught where he could not run away: in the corner of Kaede's hut, deep in meditation.

When he opened his eyes, Sango was standing over him. Her cheeks were already flushed red, but her eyes were flashing. Quietly, he spoke to her as he stood and brushed the dirt from the floor off his robes.

"Hello, Sango."

"M-Miroku -"

And then he saw her swallow convulsively and shift her eyes away from his face; the flush faded fro her skin and he saw a terrible sadness take its place.

"Why didn't you – why don't you _want _me? You... you could've – you could've -"

"Could have done what, Sango? Spared your pride, at the cost of your virtue? At the cost of the love between us, when you realized how terribly I had taken advantage of you? Didn't you hear what I said, Sango?"

He spoke low words, rough with passion badly controlled, rough with the memory of her naked skin in the moonlight, the shadows of her hands.

Sango hesitated, trembled.

Her life had collapsed around her in a matter of weeks; she had lost Kagome to Sesshomaru because of Inuyasha; she had lost Inuyasha to himself because of her own grief, her own rage. She had been afraid that she had lost Miroku, too – she still was. He spoke of love between them and knew that he was wise, wise, wise – that he was speaking nothing but the truth.

But a part of her still did not believe him. A part of her wanted nothing more than for him to take her, here, now, on this dirt floor ten feet from Inuyasha's unconscious body.

It was the part of her that saw only scars and dark, wind-roughened skin whenever she looked in the mirror – the part of her that has always stared at her weapons callouses and wondered what man would want her to touch him with such hands – the part of her that knew her body was muscled, too hard for a woman, her curves gone to slimness.

"How? How can you want me? _Me_? No...no..."

Miroku watches her shake her head, sees the tightness of her fingers on her sleeves, and is at a loss. How to prove to her his feelings and his desires were – _are_ – real? How to make her understand when words are not working; are, obviously, not enough? He can remember clearly the moonlight on her skin, the slight shiver that overcame her as she slid her robe away, the roundness of her breast as she cupped it in one hand – the invitation of her hand on her thigh, trailing downwards, downwards.

His body responds to just the memory, just the thought.

"Sango...Sango. I'm such a fool; you really don't believe me, do you? Have you ever?"

Miroku took two quick steps toward her, and then grasped her hands and pulled her against him. He heard her gasp of surprise, and then felt her go stiff and tight in his arms, feeling the hard length of his arousal press against her. He made no more sudden moves, did not even turn to see her in face.

"Sango – I love you. I desire you. I have asked you to be my bride, my wife, to bear me sons and daughters, to make your life beside me until the end of our days. If this is something I must tell you every day to gain your belief in it – I will do it, Sango."

He turned his face then and looked her full in the eyes, saw tears hovering, shimmering in her soft brown gaze.

"Miroku...I'm -"

"Don't worry, Sango. Didn't I tell you I was a fool? I understand. _I'm_ sorry. You don't need to say a word – you don't need to say anything."

He held her tight for a long time, standing in the quiet shadows of an old miko's hut, listening to the rain pour down, and the sobs shake Sango, as she let out the long-held griefs that had pained her past.

A/N: 800 words! Bit of a longer one...and we're back in the plot! Mostly! These guys were abandoned for smut, so I felt bad – it also let me speed through a couple days. Remember the beginning of this chapter, for it is important to the next one – Sesshomaru has been finishing up his plans, and Kagome is going to be a bit surprised by some of the things that will begin to happen to her...I wonder who will be the first to notice the signs? She..or He...or one of You?

Please Review!


	239. Chapter 239

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXXXIX

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Secret_

It would take far more time than had passed for inhabitants of Sesshomaru's fortress to become accustomed to their new...Lady. In the few days that had passed since her astonishing victory over the mother of her mate, the whispers had, not lessened, but shifted direction.

She was nothing like the humans any of them had encountered; she was miko, and powerful, and pure; she was decadent in her beauty and in the streaming sweetness of her scent; she was open in her passion and in her pleasure. Every member of Sesshomaru's court had heard the echoes of her ecstasy, seen the lovely contortion of her face and body; most of them had watched her destroy Hashiridokoro.

The question on their lips now was _why_ – why did she stay, why did she accept Sesshomaru's suit – why did she linger among youkai, when by nature she was the enemy of all she laid eyes upon? It did not occur to them that she – and Sesshomaru – had both been trapped by the foolishness of another. The fact that Sesshomaru had a hanyou half-brother was known, but not much spoken of – not by those who wanted to live much longer.

Kagome wandered openly, morning, noon, and night. She walked through the many gardens, and up and down the Long Stair that ran from the foot of the ocean-washed cliffs to the highest courtyard of the Palace. She walked freely on the Stone Path, on the Green Path, on the Silver Path, and in the Autumn gardens; she crossed the Inner River at will, sometimes alone, sometimes with Rin or Shippou or both beside her.

It was obvious to anyone that cared to look that she was not afraid – her laughter carried far, and there was no corner, no crevice forbidden to her; she peered into the workings of all the various parts of her mate's household, and her presence was felt strongly even in the least of these.

Servants in the kitchens already knew her by name; one evening, the Silk Mistress was invited to Kagome's chambers. She came bringing her own wine, and stayed until the early hours of the morning. Yoko remained Kagome's only lady, but servants came and went, doing only their duty but surprising even Sesshomaru with the ease with which they accepted the mortality of their mistress.

When a week had passed in this way, Sesshomaru finally decided that it was time to move things along; it was the twenty-seventh day of the tenth month, and the new moon festival in three days time would be an important occasion. That evening, he sought out his mate in her chambers, interrupting some laughing conversation with Yoko, and explained to her what it was that was approaching.

"In three nights, when the moon rises darkly, the festival begins – the first since you became my mate. I will bring you out before them, announce your name and titles, and at that time you will take on publicly the mantle of Lady of the West. The fortress at the northern boundaries, the accounts and treasuries of the west, the Histories and the Long Lists will all become your responsibility."

Kagome stared with wide eyes, and then looked down at the her hands, picked nervously at the embroidery of her robe – blue gauze today, bright as a sapphire, over a gown of figured green.

"There is time for you to learn the responsibilities of your station – my concerns are more immediate. Some of my guests, Kagome...you have done well, making yourself at home."

He leaned forward, brushed his lips gently across her cheek, over her mouth.

"There is still so much that you are not prepared for. Youkai who answer to other lords than I will not be polite about your presence; their masters will be more irritating still. Some will be females angered that I have chosen you, over them. Others will be lords who believe I have come around to their way of thinking – Takumikurou, for one. He has a well-known _taste_ for human women. First he seduces them and keeps them in his bed; then when he grows tired of them, he devours them."

He sneered; Kagome felt her hands turn cold, reminded herself of her recent victory, of many other such victories – of the power she could use if circumstance required it. Sesshomaru noticed her sudden nervousness but said nothing; later he could comfort her, but for now...

"I am certain that though his words will be crude and his innuendo obnoxious, his intent will be deadly. There is more for you to worry over than just our guests, however. You will drink nothing I have not tasted first, and you will _eat_ nothing but what I give you, mate. You are vulnerable to poison and to...unpleasant tricks."

She stared at him.

"Unpleasant...tricks?"

He looked impatient.

"_Think_, Kagome. These are _youkai_."

When she still looked confused, he leaned closer to her, spoke even more softly and precisely.

"Do you know what human meat looks like, mate?"

Horrified, she raised a hand to her mouth.

His expression grim, Sesshomaru leaned back and steepled his fingertips together. Light glinted on his claws.

"I did not think so. Cautious, Kagome...you must always be cautious."

Kagome forced a shaky smile on her face, and reached out to touch his hand.

"I will be – but I trust you to tell me what I need to know."

His eyes widened, grew large and bright.

"Trust me? _Do_ you?"

There was such intensity in him suddenly that she was almost afraid; she let out a breath of laughter, trying to break the tension. She sensed from him a sudden peril...the threat offered by a cornered beast. She spoke quietly, while he was still looking away, as if she did not really mean for him to hear, as if it were her secret – but he did.

A/N: 1000 words! Another long one...teehee. Plot again – Sesshomaru has once again got 'splaining to do, but at least this time Kagome's probably not going to die. She may not have much appetite...hehehe. Annnyway...onwards! To more chapters! Because Nano starts Wednesday and that means probably not many updates during August. - See what I mean about forgetful brain? Foolishness. Anyway, one more chapter for today!

Please Review!


	240. Chapter 240

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXL

Prompt From Kayelyn's Weekly Word Challenge

_Volant_

Kagome's sentence came across sharp and throbbing as one of her arrows.

"When you ask a question like that I wonder if you forget that I have given up _everything..._to be here...with you."

Warmth soared within him.

"Mate..."

She quieted him with questions before he could say another word.

"Tell me about the festival – who will introduce me? Will I have to stand alone, or will you be with me?"

He stared into her eyes, answered more than the question she had asked.

"I will be with you. I will always be with you."

_Always._

A/N: 100 words! A snippet this time...a fluffy snippet :P Onward to some stuff...and then some more stuff and then...alright, alright, I'll give you a hint: "...The more sensitive among the guests discerned a visible aura of light around her, the shimmering of miko power that was even stronger now than it usually was..." But THAT'S ALL until...tomorrow!

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	241. Chapter 241

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLI

Prompt From Naq: Not Quite A Word

_Fwibblewobble_

To certain eyes, Kagome glowed as she walked beside Sesshomaru through the Pavilion of Dark Nights and Harmony, learning names and faces. The more sensitive among the guests discerned a visible aura of light around her, the shimmering of miko power that was even stronger now than it usually was, prodded to wakefulness by her conscious desire to intimidate and the presence of so many powerful youkai.

It was a far cry from how she had appeared when she awoke that morning – Yoko had half-dragged her from her bed and into the bath, and had endured two hours of monosyllabic and completely nonsensical replies to all her questions.

"You must wear my Lord's colors today, of course, but would you prefer the gold hair ornaments or the white jade, Kagome?'

"Mmm..."

"The night will grow cool, so I will put aside this cloak for you; do you think you will be warm enough?"

"Eghhh."

"The guests are beginning to arrive – look, Kagome, do you see the torches coming up the mountain?"

At that, Kagome made a noise that sounded like "fwibblewobble", but might actually have been a sob and a gasp crossing circuits and not an attempt at speech.

It was only Sesshomaru's arrival that had brought her back some semblance of poise; now, on his arm, she was beauty and grace and there was no sign of the nervous girl that had showed herself in the morning quiet.

Yoko watched from a doorway, smiling to herself.

A/N: 250 words! Yup...fwibblewobble. That was all Naq. But I DID IT. Woot. On to...another chapter!

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	242. Chapter 242

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLII

Prompt From Naq: A Word

_Whym-wham_

As the dark moon rose and the festival began in the Pavilion of Dark Nights and Harmony, Inuyasha sat with his back against the wall, fighting pain and exhaustion to keep himself awake. His arms were tight around himself; the sword that Kaede had obtained for him, a blade purchased from the village smith, had no power to soothe his damaged soul. It was as useless as a knick-knack, a bit of fancy metal to ornament his robes.

He could not trust himself to sleep, not when even those he had trusted as friends might take this chance to destroy him.

He wouldn't blame them.

If anyone else had done what he himself had done -

_I would be right there with them. I would be..._

He shook his head, closed his eyes. Tonight, of all nights, he knew better than to think such thoughts. All his emotions were ripped close to the surface by the missing moon, all his feelings sharper, digging deeper, pressing more harshly on his mind.

With slow movements, Inuyasha stood and grabbed the sword from it's place by the wall, used it as a crutch to hobble his way across Kaede's floor and outside, to stand under the stars. He stood for only a moment, before he swayed and was forced to lower himself to the ground; he kept the sword close by his side.

If nothing else, he would deny any attacker his life and take it himself.

A/N: 250 words! Apparently naqwords are 250 word prompts..who knew? This one is actually a real word – it means "a whimsical object or device especially of ornament or dress". Poor Inu...I contemplated killing him, but I've put so much work into giving him sense that it seems a waste. Onward once more, you spoiled spoiled peoples...but tomorrow, for This Lyra is tired of formatting.

Please Review!


	243. Chapter 243

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLIII

Prompt From Naq: A Word

_Transmogrify_

Hours passed. Dark haired and dark hearted, Inuyasha sat still in the same position, his eyes on the stars, his thoughts wandering, wondering. He thought of his own past – years of lonely silence, as a pup in the wild. Years of lonely companionship, stalking Kikyou's footsteps. And then...Kagome. He could admit to himself that he had known even from the beginning, she was nothing like Kikyou. He could admit that she had brought light and laughter to his world, color and all the joys that walk the world under the shining sun.

He could admit that in taking her without words, he had hurt her; that in his anger, his jealousy, he had hurt her worse.

But he could not find it within himself to admit that he had lost her forever to Sesshomaru; that she would never again be by his side, in his arms, in his bed.

Dawn was growing near.

He could think of no plan to save her, no apology to save himself -

Footsteps, behind him. He stood and whirled and spun – quickly, but not nearly as fast as he was accustomed to. Out of habit, the sword that had lain beside him was already in his hands, unsheathed – the glimmer of it distracted him, the raw sheen of steel.

_Unfamiliar. Not Tetsusaiga, rusted-to-rampant_.

It is Miroku that has come to confront him – Miroku, alone.

"Hello, Inuyasha."

"Miroku."

"You are healing well?"

"Yeah. Sure. Fine, I guess, tonight's a setback, that's all."

Miroku stared hard at the end of the sword in Inuyasha's hands, and then harder still at Inuyasha, at brown eyes beneath black brows.

"I have not come to hurt you, Inuyasha."

"No?"

The word came out harsher than Inuyasha meant it to – but the betrayal of his _pack_ had hurt. Had they only been his friends because of Kagome? Had they only put up with his _difference_ for her sake?

He had seen raw hatred and disgust in Sango's eyes the night he returned; he had not been able to forget it. Miroku, though...

_Miroku stopped her. Miroku brought me to Kaede; she said as much._

"Sorry. I deserved..._that_. Before. Worse, actually."

Slowly, because Miroku already knew that he had been wounded, Inuyasha sat back on the grass. Next to him, Miroku sank down more quickly, resting his elbows on his thighs.

"I came because I wanted to talk to you, Inuyasha."

"Oh, yeah?"

Inuyasha's voice was wary.

"Yes. Inuyasha, you have always turned to your demon instincts for strength, to the darker half of your nature. You are hanyou, half-demon...but you are half human, too. Tonight, of all nights – tonight, when the moon is dark, this is obvious to me and to the world. Your hanyou blood has caused you nothing but trouble; it gives you strength with one hand, and takes with all of its others."

Inuyasha snorted, shook his head.

"Yeah, I know. That's the whole problem, _baka. _If I were full demon, then I'd -"

With more weight in it than usual, Miroku's staff came down on Inuyasha's head, right between the ears.

"Ow! Hey -"

It _hurt_, being hit like that when he was human, but Miroku paid no attention, spoke with his eyes on the purpling horizon.

"You know, I've always thought you were being rather stupid about this, Inuyasha. If you were full demon, you'd be just like Sesshomaru – heartless, human-hating. You'd never have sought out the shikon no tama, never would have been sealed to that tree- never would have found Kagome, if you weren't hanyou. Why do you hate your human self so much?"

"I don't hate -"

"Oh yes, yes you do. I've known that since the first new moon night I saw you, so conflicted, ashamed and confused."

With a whipping movement that whistled in the wind, Miroku raised his staff, extended it jangling towards the east and the rising sun.

"When the sun comes up, you will return to the flesh you were born in, to the curse that limits your existence, to the darkness that creeps close to consuming your soul. I can see the danger, Inuyasha – I can see the future that is coming for you, when there is no one to care for you, and no one whom you care for – when you are hunted like the beast that lurks inside you, and there is no safe haven, no retreat."

Inuyasha closed his eyes, turned away. In his hanyou shape, under the influence of his father's blood, he would have felt anger – but now, now...he feels alone, and awkward, and ashamed.

"What do you suggest, huh? It's not like it's up to me – I cannot _choose_ to be hanyou or human at will."

The sun crested the horizon at that moment, and Miroku watched the sun work its inevitable change on Inuyasha's flesh – felt the rise of pulsing youki, a gold shimmer that caressed Inuyasha's skin and then flickered out, remaining only in his eyes.

As the moment passed, Inuyasha let out a long breath, and met Miroku's gaze again.

"What if you _could_ choose, Inuyasha? What then?"

Inuyasha saw something in Miroku's face that frightened him; something that promised _change_ far beyond what had just overcome him with the dawn.

"If I...if...I...could _choose_?"

He thought of the promise he had made Kikyou – that he would become human, to save her heart from a loveless life. He thought of the promise Kagome had made to him – to stay by his side, to love him just as he was, exactly as he was.

He thought of nights and days spent wishing that he could be one thing or the other, youkai or human, weak or strong...

He turned, and ran for the forest – ran away from his thoughts, and his fears, and the future.

A/N: 1000 words...apparently all naqwords are not 250 word prompts after all :p. Now...having taken care of that, it's onward, but back in time shortly, as we return to the beginning of the new moon and the Pavilion of Dark Nights and Harmony, where Kagome steps forward, ready to take her place...

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	244. Chapter 244

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Oleander: Beauty, Grace_

In robes of white and red, her hair bound up with pins of white jade, flowers hanging near her temple, jewels pressed to her skin, Kagome felt like a stranger. A lovely stranger, to be sure – but the weight of the ornaments was unfamiliar, and the weight of the robes was odd. They matched Sesshomaru's in color and design, but not in style – she had lost track of the layers, but Yoko had insisted she wear at least eight, and Kagome peered at her sleeve, counting – red underrobe, white gauze, gold gauze, red silk, white patterned gold, red patterned gold, gold gauze embroidered stiffly with the red crest of Sesshomaru's house, and finally the red patterned white.

_Yep, eight layers. Gods...I'm going to **burn** these when tonight is over -_

She walked with Sesshomaru from her rooms to the door of the Main Hall, and then outside; tonight, for the first time since she had arrived, they walked together down the Long Stair, all three thousand steps. She felt the weight of eyes on her as all the servants, the court and the members of Sesshomaru's Council and entourage stood silent along the way to watch their progress.

Kagome stepped lightly, her hand resting on his arm, her eyes flickering here and there, meeting some of the gazes that lingered on her, sweeping over the buildings that she had come to know, a little, in the few weeks of her stay.

At the bottom of the stairs, they turned right, and Kagome sensed a great exodus behind them, caught fleeing figures out of the corner of her eye and assumed rightly that the assembled members of their household were going now to their individual places. The pavilion was not far, only a few steps from the end of the stairs, and then across nine large, flat slabs of white stone, each inscribed with a different character.

Kagome knew the words – Sesshomaru had impressed them on her with many warnings, teaching her the soul of _virtue_ among youkai.

First, and basest –_ Kyouran_, the madness – the engulfing fury of emotions that were both strength and weakness. Strength, the strength that carries all other things; weakness, for once destroyed, all else falls. Kagome walked over _Kyouran_ with fire inside her – this, of all the things she had learned, she knew best. Anger was power, and righteous fury, and joy, and...love.

_Love is the madness._

She smiled as thought it, and leapt lightly across the water with Sesshomaru's arm at her waist, onto the second stone: _Kyouryoku_, the easiest to understand, the doubled strength, strength and force, to possess and to wield – the harnessing of the madness of _Kyouran_.

Third, _Sessou_ – honor, personal honor, commitment to a chosen course. Integrity of will, of desire, of purpose.. _"More than the wild beasts of the wood are we; more than size and power alone can tell. This is why we take two-legged shapes; not in imitation of man, but so that we stand over the world."_ So Sesshomaru had told her; so she understand that after strength, comes honor – the choice of when to use that strength _rightly_. There is honor in conquest, and in the great arts of the world; honor even in a trickster's mischief, if that is his dedicated choice.

Next, _Giri_. Duty; obligation. This stone struck her the first time she came here with Sesshomaru, not three days before; it strikes her again, now, with its message, with its reminder.

_The hardest burden to bear. The things that make us do what we wouldn't otherwise do – the reason I am here, now, in the place – all of it and everything, goes back to this. Because I shattered the shikon no tama; because my presence unleashed a great evil across the land._

The fifth step is lighter, easier. _Chuujitsu_. Loyalty. Devotion. To be true – this is instinct to her; this is indelibly a part of her nature. It is what brought her back to the past, so many times; it is what led her beside Inuyasha even when her heart was breaking. It is what teaches her growing feeling for Sesshomaru – for she knows now what he expects of her, and she sees the heart of him, and begins to understand.

The sixth stone is slippery under their feet, wet with lapping water; Kagome wonders if this is on purpose, because the sixth virtue is _Bimyou_ – elegance, grace. The ability to balance on strange surfaces. She is clumsy and human, and knows this all too well – she had tripped her way into the past, after all – if she had been faster, more agile, more graceful, she would have avoided the Centipede's grasp.

Here, she has no fear of falling. Sesshomaru's arm is still around her, and he is as sure and swift as if they stood on solid ground. The seventh stone is dry; _Bu Gi_, the skills of the warrior, the ability to rely on oneself – power, and the desire to use it. This, only a part of her understands. She has the power; she has used it many times, in defense of herself and others. She has killed, destroyed, purified...but such is not her desire.

At the eighth stone, her eyes catch sight of what is waiting for her in just a few more steps – a horde of youkai, each of them with their gaze locked on her, feral, intense, hungry. Her heart stutters; her throat turns dry. She steps across the sharp, engraved character of _Jisonshin_, pride, with her head high. Kagome swallows her fear and projects _power_, remembers a thing Sesshomaru told her long before:

" _Remember that you are __**my**__ woman, if anyone dares to say __**woman**__ with disrespect._"

She will not have less pride in herself than he does; she will not be less than the woman he believes her to be. For the first time in several years, there are expectations of her that are based on a good opinion, on desire and an honest estimation of her personal strengths -

_I will live up to them._

The ninth step is swift, over _Chie_, wisdom – the result of experience and the reward of power. To know – and not to know. Truth, and the recognition of a liar; the achievement of those who recognize the lessons of every previous step.

And then she is standing in the pavilion, and Sesshomaru is stepping away from her side, bringing her forward, holding onto her hand now only by the very tips of his fingers and those deadly claws.

"My mate, Kagome, the Higurashi-hime, priestess-guardian of the shikon no tama and Lady of the West. Bow before her, you who are vassals to my power!"

In the silence that followed his words, all eyes were on Kagome.

Slowly, they bowed before her, and spoke with one voice.

"We are yours to command, Kagome-dono!"

Under Sesshomaru's eye, none dared say anything else. When all had stood, and silence had fallen again, Sesshomaru brought her to the center of the pavilion, and looked down into her eyes.

"It is time for the vow, Kagome."

* * *

><p>AN: 1200 words, my goodness! And now we know what youkai want out of life...and how Kagome has begun to apply that to herself. Next, a long-completed chapter that has been waiting in the wings; short and sweet, I hope. ONWARDS!

Please Review!


	245. Chapter 245

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Arbutus: I Love Only Thee_

"In your darkness, I will be light. For I love only thee, and fear not for thee; in thy right hand is strength, the strength of steel, and in thy left hand is power, the power of conquest."

"And I have conquered thee-"

"And thou hast conquered me."

Kagome's face shines like a star; her heartbeat pounds in his ears like a thousand drums. Sesshomaru sees in her eyes her abandonment, how deeply she has succumbed: to him, to him - to _him_ -

"You are mine, forever. Until the moon falls from the sky, and after."

"Forever; and after."

He lets slip a thread of power, coaxes free from her a fiber of strength to match – and then stands astonished as all she is flows free, an astonishing wave of pure and potent energy, ripe and sharp and ruthless.

In response he looses the control that reduces his aura to a shining cocoon, unbinds his great and terrible power and lets it flower around her. He steps close to her, and lifts her thumb to his mouth – savors the sweetness of the few drops of blood that fall to his tongue as he nips her, gently, with a single fang.

With a claw, he pierces the ball of his own thumb and presses it to her lips.

It is the ancient exchange – the visible and final seal to an Inu mating.

The taste of his blood is copper and fire in her mouth.

Between them, not one but a hundred, a thousand, an uncountable multitude of glowing threads of power flicker between them, and then weave themselves together in an immense tapestry of golden-violet light.

* * *

><p>AN: 280 words! This chapter was begun and first posted for the "flame" weekly perfection contest on Dokuga_Contest waaaay back in november/december of last year. Yes, I have had this planned for that long. Baha! Anyway...forward, onward, never back...disregarding anything of which there is lack...as always, the last thing I say to you..

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	246. Chapter 246

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLVI

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Iris: Faith, Valor, Wisdom, Inspiration_

The light faded and broke apart into a sparkling sea of fireflies, dancing motes of power to rival the stars peering out at them from overhead. When the dissolution had completed, Kagome felt something strengthened within herself; the bond between herself and Sesshomaru, tightening now, firming itself into a narrow bridge between two powers, two souls.

The feeling was...comforting. Now, she knows she has a place to belong; a place that will be hers as long as she chooses to make it so – and a person, too.

_Sesshomaru._

Kagome looked at him out of the corner of her eye, saw no expression on his face and did not find that surprising. When they are alone together, and especially in moments of passion – then, something shows that he does not or cannot hide. A warmth she has heard reflected in his words; a hint of softness.

_Perhaps it is only instinct; I would be foolish to hope for anything more. Except he, too, is wondering – I heard him. _

Kagome wiped her thoughts clean as Sesshomaru tugged her forward, off of the ritual dais and over to a low cushion, set before a table loaded with meats and fruits and roots, wines and liquors and sparkling, scentless waters. She eyed the assortment of _cuisine _with a delicate eye, and waited for Sesshomaru to fill his own plate, and then hers -

She had no trouble remembering his warning.

"_Do you know what human meat tastes like, Kagome?"_

For a moment, there was a terrible trembling in her fingers, but Sesshomaru's hand was on the back of her neck then, stroking lightly, a promise, a presence – again, she was steadied by him; again, she reaffirms the promise she had made to herself.

She looked up, and took the bowl of wine he passed to her, and drank a small sip of the rich, dark liquid.

"So, mate, what do we do now?"

She saw a glimmer of warmth in his eyes that she had learned to expect, and he answered in a low voice.

"Now, we feast."

"And then?"

"And then the music, and the telling of stories, and the dancing."

Kagome grinned and cast her eye across the feasting youkai; she caught sight of Shippou and Rin, sitting together at a table full of other young ones. There were curious eyes being cast in Rin's direction, and curious hands patting her cheeks, her face, looking at her fingers and her wiggling toes.

Kagome caught Shippou's eye, and glanced meaningfully in Rin's direction; he nodded cheerfully, and waved at her, and then turned his attention more fully to his new friend.

"I am pleased with your kit, Kagome."

She turned to Sesshomaru, surprised.

"Well – not that I'm not glad, but -"

"This is the first Festival or Feast that Rin has ever attended; these are the first young ones she has been with since the day I gave back her life and she began to follow me."

Kagome's eyebrows lifted high on her forehead, and she stared at him quietly for a moment, turned to look at the girl, smiling so brightly, pointing out a missing tooth -

"That's...sad. Why couldn't she -"

"It was far too dangerous. I have no pups of my own – who would watch over her? Who would ensure her safety? I could not bring her here beside me, I could not sit her at the High Table...she is neither mate nor daughter, though she is...something..."

Kagome laughed quietly, reached out and patted his hand.

"Sesshomaru, only you would make something so simple so complex."

He stared at her as if she is mad, and shakes his head.

"_Simple_? Nothing about her presence here is simple – or have you forgotten so swiftly the first few days you spent here? The first reaction of the Silk Mistress? The advice of my own Council, that I should kill you and be done with trouble and obligation?"

His voice was a charged whisper; it struck her sharp, and she drew in a deep breath, sat straighter and cast her eye at the girl once more.

When she spoke again, it was in a more careful tone.

"So – Shippou -"

"Your Shippou will not let any of the other young ones harm her. Shippou has seen battle, and knows his own power, and has used it in defense of himself and others; they have not. He is young, your kit – very young. But he is wiser than his years, and he has a trickster's sense for mischief and a sharp sense of the germane. You love him, yes? As your own son...but...you underestimate him, I think."

Sesshomaru leaned close to her, looked down the line of tables past youkai who turned their gazes from his glance, and watched Shippou himself for a moment, followed the bouncing head of red hair as it chased Rin along the table.

"Underestimate -"

"You found us together, Kagome, and you thought I intended him harm – do you remember?"

She nodded; it seemed so long ago, but it had not even been a month – three weeks and a few days, only...

"You wronged me more than you know, mate. It was your kit who was the aggressor."

Her eyes grew wide and round. There was faint humor in his face as he told her the story as only Sesshomaru possibly could.

"He defended your honor; he came at me with fire out of the sky, and surprised me enough that I stepped back. He is incredibly brave for one so young – one so _small_. Even being questioned by me was not enough to deter him; he managed a second blow but that was enough."

"He...you..."

Kagome could find no words.

"I...dissuaded him of his incorrect assumptions and bade him stay still and quiet until you returned – but you know the rest."

Kagome blushed.

A/N: 1000 words! Perhaps a bit unexpected, this, but...the kids need some time, and I thought that Kagome should know exactly what she was dealing with. ::snickers:: Shippou gets sort shrift, in my opinion, so I want to...liven him up, yes? Hmm...also, THIS IS FOR YOU, R0O. Cause of awesome in general, and specific. XD 247 is almost done, and more comes soon, but still...

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	247. Chapter 247

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLVII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Cattleya Orchid: Mature Charm _

In an effort to distract Sesshomaru from some _admirable_ recounting of the moments in which she had found him with Shippou – and had unknowingly made a fool of herself with her scolding – Kagome turned her eyes to the empty seats on her side of the table.

"Sesshomaru, why is there are people sitting beside you, but no one beside me?"

He shrugged faintly, as if it was a thing of no consequence, though truly it had been of some concern to him.

"You have no trusted females but Yoko – and she is only a servant, not worthy to sit at the High Table. You have no Council of your own, and so -"

"How do I invite someone to sit beside me?"

"What?"

Sesshomaru finds the exclamation startled out of him, and she giggled behind her hand.

"Well, I don't think I should stand up and wave and yell -"

"No. That would not be..."

He stops, and Kagome giggles again, amused at having rendered him mildly speechless. He settled for "No." again, and granted her a contemplative glance.

"If you desire someone to have such an honor, you need only go to them and invite them. But, Kagome-"

Whatever warning, whatever instruction he intended to give her, it was too late. She was on her feet already; she took a deep breath and moved around the end of the High Table and down between the others. With senses other than sight, he felt her power swelling as she moved, filling out the empty spaces between other auras, inflicting itself on the darkest pulses of youki in the room and gentling others.

Whether she was making the decisions consciously or not, he did not know – but he watched her move around the room and find the females whom her power bothered. Each one, she bent close and spoke to, offered a quiet invitation to one of the six empty cushions that had stretched out glaringly beside Kagome since she first sat down.

Sesshomaru counts off the names on to himself as she moves around the room, because at least one of these females he knows she cannot possibly have met before this moment; she has not visited this fortress since the days before his father's death.

_Amaya, the Black Wolf; Suzu, Orochi's blind daughter...and Shiori her sister as well. Will you choose no Inu, Kagome? Ah...Kazumi, a good choice, and...Hoshihikari-dono?_

He stared stunned as Kagome touched the shoulder of the female who had born both his mother, and his father's grandfather, and tracked her progress across the pavilion and up to the High Table with his eyes.

_Hoshihikari-dono; why...would you be so accepting of her?_

The last of the six that Kagome has chosen is _not_ the one that he least expected; that female, she has already chosen without knowing it – but as she is approaching her sixth choice Sesshomaru hears hisses that set his blood on fire, sees hands reaching out to touch her...

"_Come sit with us, pretty lady -"_

"_Yes, come sit with us, come share."_

"_Come share, come share!"_

"_Your pretty flesh...ah..."_

But he knew then that it _was_ a conscious purpose guiding her, for she too could hear the whispers, and the hands that were reaching drew back swiftly before they touched her, scorched and visibly smoking.

Other whispers began, scattered throughout the feasting guests, and Sesshomaru smiled to himself; a smile that said _beware_. Kagome continues down the outside edge of the table until she comes to the female who is sitting at its head, glowering now.

"Aya. You are not as foolish as your companions; come, sit, eat with me. I can trust you, yes?"

As if it was a foregone conclusion, as if it was something inevitable that was never in question, the Silk Mistress stood and bowed low.

"My lady. Of course."

Kagome followed Aya back to her place at the High Table, and then sat carefully, mindful of her robes and the heavy ornaments in her hair. Sesshomaru watched from the corner of one eye as Kagome learned the names of the females she had selected.

A/N: 700 words and...yes, if you are asking what I think you are asking, you did indeed read what you thought you read. If you are not asking what you should be asking, read it again, veeeery carefully. It'll be important later. Anyway...moving onward...

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	248. Chapter 248

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLVIII

Prompt From DDN: 12/1/12

_Noodles_

The row of females who took up spots by Kagome's side were each different, but Sesshomaru had to admit that through chance or the use of some power which he had not attributed to her, his mate had made her selections well. Suddenly it is his end of the table that seems empty and quiet; he overhears a question from Hoshihikari-dono, and shake his head in silence at Kagome's answer.

"_But what are you eating, Kagome-sama? Are they – alive?"_

"_No, no; they're noodles – they're made from grain. You are – Hoshihikari-san?_ _Would you like to try some?"_

The whole table froze at the impertinent address she used. Kagome did not seem to notice; she knew only that Sesshomaru was Lord over all of these beings, the greatest power and the only one she thought worthy of respect. It had not occurred to her that he might have family in the crowd of youkai; he had never said that any of his kin but Inuyasha survived, now that she had purified his mother.

The frozen moment only continued when there was no exclamation from Hoshihikari-dono about the terrible insult she had been paid; instead, following Kagome's example, Hoshihikari-dono slurped a noodle.

A/N: Long time no post! But there was DDN and Nano ended and...well, tons of chapters appeared! So hang on, they're coming...I think I wrote up to...266 so far? Yeah. XD Gimme a day or so cause formatting's a bitch, but...WOO.

Please Review!


	249. Chapter 249

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXLIX

Prompt From DDN: 12/1/12

"_In the middle of a battlefield..."_

Hoshihikari-dono makes a strange face; these are flavors she is not used to and does not know – soy sauce, strong ginger and garlic, a hint of spicy chili oil. She chews slowly and swallows, touches a tongue to her lips and takes a second mouthful of Kagome's noodles before she shakes her head and turns back to the dishes set out before her own place.

"I don't think I like these...noodles. They taste...very odd."

"Well, they are human food; youkai are much fonder of meat, I've noticed. Shippou likes them, but then he is Kitsune, and you are...Inu, yes?"

As one eyes the oncoming challenger in the middle of a battlefield, Hoshihikari-dono eyes Kagome, weighing with a piercing glace, but not judging; not yet.

"You have a good eye, Kagome-sama. Most humans cannot tell one among us from another.

Kagome meets the weighty gaze with a steel stare of her own.

"It is not my eye, Hoshihikari-san. It is my power that tells me; I don't know how I know it, I just...do."

"Is that so? And such power, I saw...you are human, and it is a holy power. So dangerous...a dangerous, lovely woman...I wonder, have I met your like before?"

"No. You haven't."

A/N: 200 words...and yes, if you read these in DDN, I've doubled the size of them. On purpose. I feel bad posting only 100 word chapters after so long, so these will all be at least 200 words. Oh, and I'm almost out, so if you want to leave a prompt in a review, I'll see what I can do with it.

Please Review!


	250. Chapter 250

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCL

Prompt From DDN: 12/1/12

"_Someone with good taste, who tastes good..."_

Something crackles between Hoshihikari-dono and Kagome, but it is not power and it is not an exchange of threats. It is awareness maybe, a sense that here, each has met her match in strength and purpose. Sesshomaru is watching out of the corner of his eye; the whole Hall is watching thus, examining this interaction critically.

Only Sesshomaru is poised to interfere at any moment; only Sesshomaru is bringing the pounding blood behind his eyes to bear in preparation for violence – there is a chance that she might swat him aside as one swats a fly, but he has no proof of her power.

_She is only old, old, old – and we assume, all of us, as we have always done, that that must mean something. _

His eyes narrow; he knows she can feel his intentions, his intent – in a moment poison will rise bubbling from his claws and the room will be full of that sweet, acrid odor – and then finally, there is a change.

Whatever Hoshihikari-dono has seen, no one else can tell, but it is enough. She leans back, and a smile crosses her face; Kagome, too smiles, and leans forward.

"Oh – Hoshihikari-san, I think we're going to be great friends."

"Yes – yes, I think so. My grandson has found a mate with good taste – and does she taste good, Sesshomaru?"

She speaks over Kagome's shoulder toward Sesshomaru; he stares back at her with an unreadable expression on his face, and a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Kagome, too, has a sinking feeling – but that is because the female's words are still echoing in her head, and she thinks she has made a terrible mistake.

_Her – grandson? Her grandson, my mate...Sesshomaru? Sesshomaru, her grandson?_

Kagome's fingers begin to tremble.

A/N: 300 words this time...mmm...and...teehee. Onward? Yes, I think onward. Also, YAY. 250 chapters of Alpha.

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	251. Chapter 251

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLI

Prompt From DDN: 12/1/12

_Avenge_

For a moment, Sesshomaru wonders if his mother's mother is here to avenge herself with humiliation instead of violence, but he cannot deny that she seems genuinely pleased with Kagome. Sesshomaru reminds himself that she was one of the few who did not despoil his father's reputation after he took up with Izayoi; that she is grandmother on his mother's side, but great-great-grandmother on his father's.

_I must answer her question, even if Kagome is displeased with me – but she should know better than to be embarrassed after her display of the other day._

"She has a taste as lovely as her scent; you should know better than to expect anything less of me. Kagome, Hoshihikari-dono is my mother's mother and my father's great-grandmother. She has not visited in _many_ years."

Kagome flushes crimson.

"H-Hoshihikari...dono..."

And her eyes tell Sesshomaru that it is _her_ vengeance he will have to deal with later, for not preventing her blunder. That she is trembling because she is angry – at _him. _He has not yet had to deal with her anger, but then..

_But then, I might enjoy that._

He smiles faintly, and is surprised to see her eyes still on him, and the flush in her cheeks changing, focusing. Finally, Kagome leaned forward and whispered something to Aya, who had been seated on her left. Sesshomaru does not like the smile on her face, or the nod she makes – and even less does he like it when Kagome stands and makes her way to his stand beside him.

She leans close to him, and a strand of her hair falls over her shoulder and tickles his cheek; he is smothered in her scent; his eyes are drawn to the curve of her breasts and then up along the line of her throat to her eyes, which are watching him full of mischief.

Kagome comes closer, closer – he thinks she is going to kiss him, and almost against his will his lips are parting, his fingers reaching out to touch her -

But she only leans beside his ear, and breathes her words so quietly he is sure not even the other youkai sitting closest to them have heard her.

"The next time you invite your _kin who I do not know exist_ to a celebration in _my honor where it is important I be polite_, I would like you to _tell me first_! - do you understand, _mate_?"

And then she does kiss him, and he is breathless when she lets him go, and saunters back to her seat. There is a new whispering in the Hall; suddenly whatever Kagome called Hoshihikari is not nearly as interesting as what she might possibly have said to Sesshomaru – because though none among them heard her words, all of them with their eyes focused on her face saw her lips moving in profile – saw that kiss, tender but not tentative, sweet but sure and sensual.

"Well done, Kagome-sama, well done."

Despite everything she has just done, Kagome thinks that perhaps it will not matter, because Hoshihikari-_dono_ is insistent on keeping her attention – and perhaps the attention of all those in the Hall, on her.

A/N: Um...525 words? Hehe...oops. But you aren't complaining are you? Silly fwooms. Anyway, Kagome gets a bit of . in at Sesshomaru, followed by :3 that makes him O.O into a O.. Meanwhile, Hoshihikari tries to ruin everything...or does she? Who knows what she's up to? Certainly not me.

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	252. Chapter 252

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLII

Prompt From DDN: 12/1/12

_Black Cloud_

"Kagome-sama, the more I watch you the more confused I become. You are granted the will of heaven to destroy me on sight; though I would fight you, who knows who would win? You, who hold dominion over a great power...and no, you should not worry for your small mistake."

Kagome is no longer concerned about what she he has been calling Hoshihikari – _san_ or _dono_ does not matter when the shikon no tama is at stake. Kagome's hands come up in a long learned gesture to cover the sphere of power glowing between her breasts.

Hoshihikari only smiles and nods her head; Kagome reminds herself of the feeling of camaraderie that touched her not so long ago, but she can't find it now; she senses only danger.

_Why bring attention to it – why mention it – when everything was going so well._

And yet from Hoshihikari herself Kagome senses not the slightest interest or threat; she regards the shikon no tama as one might regard a pretty bauble, even while her words...

"Yes, dominion...over a great power. So, tell me...why are you the mate of my grandson -"

_Twice over your grandson -_

"- who is surely not the kindest of youkai, nor the most compassionate, nor one much interested in humans? Should you not be purifying us all, and him first among us? I could tell you stories -"

Kagome is consumed with confusion and a bit of disgust; she is trying to figure out in her head what

these words can possibly mean, but she senses that this female before her must be ancient beyond her imagining – that her motives might be mischief or malice or worse.

The fixity of attention on the shikon no tama has grown to encompass every eye; the sense of silence that has fallen across the Hall even while there are whispers – it covers her senses like a black cloud. She is close to panic, close to lighting the spark that always waits close to the surface inside her, instants away from igniting – only here, that spark would lead to a conflagration.

Kagome takes a deep breath and holds it; if she destroys anything, she destroys everything.

_The future will be ashes; ashes._

She takes a deep breath, and holds it, and when she lets it out the cloud around her disperses; a pulse erupts from her, not of purifying energy but _restraint_ of that energy, the tightening of a leash – and quite suddenly there is only she and her chosen few. The Hall has returned to is own conversations and interests. It is almost as if the moments before had never been; _almost_.

Kagome looks down the table past Aya and Hoshihikari, who are closest to her, almost jumbled together at the elbows, and turns her smile toward the other females she chose.

A/N: Almost 500 words...and...one more tiny onward before I have to go to the land of grandma.

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	253. Chapter 253

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLIII

Prompt From Kayelyn, Who Is Evil

_Mongolia_

The two in the middle of the six places beside her look almost like twins, and Kagome racks her brain for a moment to pull up the names they gave her as she asked them to sit beside her – _Suzu_, the blind one, white-eyed and beautiful. And the one beside her – a sister, if not a twin; _Shi...Shiori, yes_. Kagome had invited her when she had seen the grip Suzu had on one of her hands, and the two girls had walked in synchronized steps before her, oddly graceful, never quite in step.

_Like the ridges on the back of a single serpent flying through the sky._

"Suzu, Shiori, tell me something of yourselves; I only know your Serpent nature – where do you come from? How do you pass your time?"

Her eyes are focused on the two of them, and it is perhaps only because she is from a future where such things are not uncommon that she notices immediately the subtle movements of Suzu's fingers, and the rapt fixity of Shiori's flickering gaze. Not only that, but it is Suzu who speaks; Shiori remains seated and silent, only her eyes active, gathering everything from the room.

Kagome sits straighter when she realizes, and looks at the two more closely – she understands that synchronized motion now.

_Shiori...Shiori must be deaf – I see. So she is Suzu's eyes, and Suzu is her sister's translator, her ears in this whispering world._

Suzu's voice is soft and thin and oddly rasping; it sounds to Kagome's ears like the sound of sand sifting through a screen.

"My sister and I are the daughters of Orochi, the Serpent Lord. Our home is in the north, on the mainland; ours are the wide plains of Mongolia and the tall northern mountains. We are the singers of songs and the tellers of stories, and we are the seers of dreams. Have you had a dream, Great Lady?"

Kagome is startled, but she doesn't show it.

"No...no – well, none that I remember, anyway."

A/N: 350 words! And...that is all for now; Kay, you silly fwoom, see what you did? Now they're from Mongolia! . Anyway more after my grandmother's church...thing...is over. WOO. I feel better now.

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	254. Chapter 254

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLIV

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Acacia: Platonic Love, Beauty In Retirement_

Kagome felt strange beneath the heavy gaze of those two, for though Suzu could not _see_ her, the intensity of her attention was not less. In a very few moments, several dozen things rushed through Kagome's head – wonder at why she really picked these two, beyond the lack of reaction in them to the power with which she flooded the room – a sense of foreboding, because in the future a seer is a thing to laugh at in middle school, but in this past -

_In this past, many powers are alive and awake._

There was danger, and there was curiosity, and there was anything and everything she ever read or learned or heard about snakes or serpents – and that name, _Orochi_, the name of their father; could he be a son of the ancient Serpent God, Orochimaru?

_Could he be that great one himself? _

And the two sisters – come despite their mutual handicap, come as the emissaries of a greater power, come to witness the joining of Sesshomaru and his mate...

_What is it that gives Sesshomaru primacy? What is it that marks his family line with enough prestige that he has all these here to do him honor?_

It has to be more than just the fact of the Inu no Taisho and his legendary power – much more.

Kagome blinked quickly and then smiled back at the sisters; they nodded at her, a syncopated, smiling gesture – first Shiori and then Suzu – and then they turned back to their meal. Out of the corner of her eye Kagome saw Suzu's fingers flickering, and then Shiori's hand moved to smooth her sister's hair – a comforting gesture, Kagome though, and then wondered why it was necessary.

But her attention flitted onward down the table, and she turned to the last two – not a pair when she found them, but chatting quite amiably now.

"And you two – Amaya, Kazumi, how do you find yourselves?"

"Well my Lady -"

"Yes, well. Kagome-sama, may I ask why I was chosen to accompany you?"  
>"I would like to know that as well -"<p>

Suzu spoke up quietly.

"And I – and my sister – have the same question, Great Lady."

"I wouldn't mind knowing that either...nor would my grandson mind knowing – if the look on his face means anything."

"There is no _look_ on my face, _Grandmother_ -"

"Sesshomaru!"

"It's all right, Kagome-sama, he has never had any respect for me – just like his father - "

"Because you have never deserved any respect; until my ninety-seventh year, I did not not know of your name or existence!"

"Well, if you had not been such a brat – and that is like your mother -"

"A _brat_, you say? I, Sesshomaru? You go too far."

Kagome leaned back in her chair to allow the argument a wide berth, and spoke around the pair of Inu to Amaya and Kazumi, waiting bemused for her answer.

"There's a fine line, I've seen, between those willing to tolerate me and those who wouldn't mind being...friends. You looked like you were the latter – all of you – even Aya, though we had...already met."

They all look surprised; it is the Black Wolf, Amaya, who speaks.

"That is all? That is the only reason?"

Kagome shrugged and smiled.

"What else could I want? I don't know you; I've never seen you before today, except Aya. But none of you were bothered by my power; I don't think you even noticed it, did you?"

Amaya and Kazumi shook their heads; after a moment, so did Shiori, but Suzu stared straight at her with those blind eyes.

"I was _aware_, Great Lady, but I do not mind your nature, or your power."

Aya spoke up for the first time.  
>"I, too, noticed – but I am familiar with your power, my Lady, and I know its scent too well to miss it now."<p>

Hoshihikari said nothing, and Kagome turned to go back to her plate and then frowned. A deadly exchange of glares had taken the place of the words being hurled between Sesshomaru and his...grandmother. Pointedly, she cleared her throat, and then leaned forward to take her chopsticks between her fingers.

"You know, I really don't understand it – but there's just something about you Inu and your families. Why does it seem like one way or another, you're _always_ trying to _kill_ each other?"

Sesshomaru finally turned away and looked down his own end of the table, but not without trying to get the final word.

"Mate, you should know me well enough by now to know that I would not kill kill her. Not until she apologized."

Light waves of laughter ran up and down the high table.

Kagome shook her head.

A/N: 800 words! This was supposed to be up last night but then it kept growing...and growing...and growing...and now it is a hunormous chapter. But who cares! Woo! More...later? Tomorrow? Who knows! It depends on if I can keep the chapters under control or not XP

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	255. Chapter 255

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLV

Prompt From Leftover Nano Prompt List

_Story_

With the slow, sure easing of tensions that began with a moment of laughter, the night grew easier at once. It was almost as if the gathered youkai had forgotten that Kagome was not one of them, and perhaps they could be forgiven for that; it was easy to do. Wherever she went, laughing, talking, holding out her hands in greeting – smiles followed, and approving faces, and pleased growls of various kinds. And she did not stay still, either, leaning forward over her own meal, walking down to sit beside Kazumi and listen to tales of battle in the south, returning to the lower floor of the pavilion to speak with her kit – and for half an hour, she could not free herself from delighted kits and pups and cubs and one small human girl.  
>Nothing untoward happened during the rest of the long two hours of the feast, despite all Sesshomaru's ill-expectations of it; no poison, no unfathomable scents, no <em>tricks. <em>In the noise that came after, when the tables were cleared away and the cushions were pushed back, Kagome wandered among their guests. There was an occasional prickle of power, bright on her skin, dancing in the close atmosphere of the pavilion – but no deaths. No screaming fire gorged on pink light; no panic.

Soon they were all settled, some in the water as was their preference, some on cushions around the fire, some in the air.

Suzu and Shiori stood and bowed together in Kagome's direction, and then left her side and moved to the center of the ring of cushions. Suzu knelt by the fire, and Shiori stood behind her, hands on her shoulders – and then they began to speak, twin voices, sibilant and pure – an echo that became a song; a song that became...

_Memory?_

_A vision?_

_A dream..._

Whatever it is, it flows around them like water; it carries an image, a silhouette – it carries a story.

Kagome begins to hear it in their voices, but then the voices fade away, and time, and place, and all sense of everything but what _was_, once, and is again before her.

"_In ancient days it was kami and youkai moved the world and named the names of endless forests and whispering seas. We know them as they become us, for from them comes the power and the glory. These ancient days are lost to us, but we will remember their names and stories. _

"_Once, at the changing of the winter season, when the night __was thick and broad with cold, when the trees stood thin and tall and coated in white, when the mountains chambered their silences in hollows beneath the snow -_

"_Once, there was a Fox, and his name was Toshiyuki, for he was the cleverest, the luckiest, the canniest of all his canny kind. He had a name because he thought himself deserving of one, and when the day came that he, __lucky and wise beyond all his kin who had come before, __reached his hundredth year, he woke at the setting of the high, white moon and found a second tail __lengthening his spine. _

"_He was pleased, and well it was for him that this was so, for he was the first youkai..."_

A/N: 550 words! Hmm...teehee. The first youkai was a Kistune, yes. I find it oddly fitting. No, it is not myth-accurate, unless by accident. Also, in order to make quite clear something that everyone except Kay seems to have missed (or if you didn't miss it you didn't say so, so :P ) there have abeen a few minor changes in a few previous chapters – so take a look, if you dare. Or go O.o whaaaaa? When you figure it out later. More tomorrow!

Please Review!


	256. Chapter 256

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLVI

Prompt From Azu: A Word

_Suspicious_

"_There was pleasure in the life of Toshiyuki for some few seasons, for he now possessed a power which no other could match. In the hunt he was swift and flying as a bird of prey; __there was no female that he could not claim for his own, no fight he could not win, no forest he could not claim. His dominion seemed endless and the seasons and the years passed seamless, flowing as the tide._

_Then one day Toshiyuki awoke to find once again a strengthening of his power, a lengthening of his spine; a third tail, lush as the other __two__, weighty in its power –__ too weighty, perhaps, for now the pleasures of his former life are not pleasures any longer. Faster than the fleeing hare, faster than the wind on its wanderings; keen of scent and keen of eye, so that the hunt is a game and no longer the laughing challenge of the daylight; rich in pride and prowess so that all he once __conquered in the night now bows at his feet and begs for his notice._

_He loses his companions and with them the motives for his power; his strength is suspicious, his wisdom unwanted, and as the years pass, and his power grows still greater, and the flowering of his tails becomes four, and then five, yet another trouble comes to torment Toshiyuki – the cleverest, the luckiest, the canniest of his canny kind._

_What comes to him is a weighty burden of too much power; he grew in size, grew enormous and magnificent, until he strode beside the kami in shadow and flickered with fire in the night. He was growing into new powers, new strengths, but he did not know them and unaided, he alone could master them. He grew cold and dark and paced the lonely places of the world; he sought to conquer but only within himself – a supreme conquest, never matched before or since._

_And what he learned in his loneliness was the Great Control, that pale imitation of a divine shape which lets the Lords among us stride out, two-legged, great and glorious power confined in a fragile form. What he learned was how not to be destroyed by his own strength: how to contain the stream of fire, how to run without a whisper in the wilderness, how to fly beyond the clouds into the star studded darkness that __will always be__ beyond men._

_This learning Toshiyuki passed to his sons and his daughters, when the long years of the world had brought him another like himself. __Her name was Chiyo, and she was __a female strong in purpose, one whom he could teach, and touch – __one not held back by the chill and the darkness, one who did not mind the presence of his power, but sought to grow and match him."_

The words continued; the story was not yet done, but the images were fading – the bright eyes of Toshiyuki, which had come to Kagome in the green of her own Shippou, faded away into the distance of an ancient, vanished landscape.

A single voice continued the story alone, and Kagome was surprised; she thought the sisters would only speak together.

"Through Chiyo, Toshiyuki transmitted to the future all the lessons of his past. Down through the generations of his own kin, and to others who learned to emulate his feat - the wild beast gods of the endless forests of the dawn of time. Tonight, when two have joined together in power, we honor them; and we honor you, Great Lord, Sesshomaru, He Who Walks the First Path – and you, Great Lady, Kagome, Mother to One Thousand Generations."

Kagome stared, wide-eyed, but Sesshomaru's murmur of thanks cued her enough that she spoke her own, quietly, confused; what did that _mean?_ What could that _possibly mean?_

Her eyes tracked sideways across the ground; Sesshomaru is smiling to himself, an expression that usually means death now turned inward in a moment of prefect stillness – Hoshihikari looks completely satisfied, as if something long awaited, but unexpected, has fallen perfectly into place. And everywhere else...

Everywhere else there were whispers, as Suzu stepped back one step, and Shiori stood and took her hands, and the two walked slowly back to their places in the pavilion circle. They did not sit, but lay side by side, curled into each other, Shiori on the inside curve.

In the clear space by the fire, a new pair came to take the place of the seated sisters, two young Firebirds Kagome had not met and did not know by name.

For a few moments there was silence while they set up their instruments – and then music, skilful fingers on fifty strings, soft as the wind beneath the wings. But the music did not move Kagome like the story; her heart and her head were disordered by words.

_Mother to One Thousand Generations?_

_He Who Walks the First Path?_

She looked to Sesshomaru; his eyes were closed, but he was still smiling.

For no reason she could explain she felt a tingle of foreboding.

A/N: And...875 words! Woo! That was a monster and it would NOT come OUT AGH! But it's heeeeere. Pieces are starting to fall into place – do you catch them? If not...more will be coming soon!

Please Review!


	257. Chapter 257

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLVII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Cartographer_

The bothersome feeling, the little cloud of darkness that had penetrated Kagome's state of mind – her whole being, really – did not last beyond the end of that first, misty melody. When the Firebirds bent to their strings a second time, it was with the wailing accompaniment of a sharp, solo flute; high and clear and piercing and cold. With the flute, as if called by it, comes the rising of the midnight moon. It rises dark, this first night of the new moon, but a faint glow, a corona of shadow-light, is visible to youkai eyes. The flute grows wild, but it is still cold and clear and bright; almost too bright for the night. The tone moves from bird song to a sound that might be the voice of a star, and the strings dim, and without a moment of pause that Kagome can detect the echo of the low bass throb of the last note of the strings becomes a pulsing drum.

She wants to dance, but when she stands she knows she will not be able to – not dressed as she is. But she sees other females standing near her, each of them with servant or companion, and Yoko comes to tug on her sleeve and lead her away up the stair. They do not go far, only up to an empty storage room warmed by a lighted brazier.

Other, lighter robes have been laid out for Kagome here, and she sighs with relief as Yoko relieves her of the seven outer layers of the fine garments she has been wearing. With the heaviest of the ornaments taken from her hair, and only the familiar weight of the shikon no tama dangling at her collarbone, Kagome feels light as air – though perhaps it is the wine charting a course in her veins, and not just the change of clothes.

"Thank you, Yoko, how did you know -"

"That you would want to dance? I didn't – but I knew if you _did_, you would not be able to in _those_ robes. It is my duty to anticipate your desires, your needs – that is why I am here, Kagome, do not forget."

Kagome shakes her head, and smiles, and holds out her arms so that Yoko can robe her in light and lovely gauze.

She comes back down the stairs, light-footed, limber; she stretches and arcs and the firelight shines through her robe and highlights the curves of her body. There is dancing already around the fire, and Aya and Amaya, Kazumi and Hoshihikari are beckoning for her to join them.

Sesshomaru's presence holds back the lust that he can see, even if she can not, on the faces of some among her _companions_, and not only males but females with sharpening expressions fall back when Sesshomaru makes his _displeasure_ known with a flickering of power. In a very few minutes there was a space of perhaps half a foot around Kagome that no one dared to enter.

Sesshomaru was more than pleased with this; this way his eyes had a clear path through the shadows to her shape; this way, he was sure no hands would touch her.

The flashing of her eyes and the gleam of her smile, the glow of the fire in the white gauze of her robe, the way her body lean toward him, even without her notice – he sits, and stares, and drinks his wine. When the cup is empty and he holds it out to Yoko, she does not refill it as he intends, but takes it from him and speaks low and scolding.

"Go to her – dance with her. See how she wants you? And you will never allow her any other partner, I know."

Her impertinence earns her a lifted lip, a snarl that exposes one fang.

"I have no dancing robes -"

"My lord does. Aya – the Silk Mistress wove them to match my Lady's."

He turns his eyes full on her then, a burning stare, and for a moment she quails – and then she sees that there is humor in his face, though not a kind with which she is familiar.

_Everything about him is sharp as a sword!_

He stands swiftly, so suddenly that she is surprised enough to topple backward onto her hands.

"Very well, Yoko. I assume that since you are so well prepared, these robes are already laid out for me?"

She does not, can not, meet his eyes again.

"Yes, my lord -"

He takes half a step back, and though he says nothing his meaning is clear. Yoko rises swiftly, brushing her palms against the front of her robe, and leads Sesshomaru up the stairs to a different room, this one lit with no brazier, where robes of white and red and gold are waiting. They are gauze, but heavier than Kagome's, though he wears no underrobe. He wears the gold against his skin, and the red closed over it; the white he wears open, and the long gold sash embroidered with heavy gems, true sapphire, he ties beneath it over the red-and-gold.

"Shall I bind up your hair, my Lord?"

"No."

"The fire might -"

"No! I look enough like_ him_ without – _that_."

He sweeps away and leaves Yoko behind – and when he reaches the bottom of the long stair, hair settling around him, the gold chains that bind his sleeves ringing, the blue gems flashing at his belt – in red and gold he is imperial, but the unmarred paleness of his skin is amplified, and his body is visible through the gauze, a shadow of perfect masculine beauty broadcast over the assembly.

Many beautiful males and females are assembled, yet none of them are a match for him – and he knows it – and so, too, do they.

Kagome does not see him arrive.

She is still dancing; her hands draw shapes in shadow and the flames line her face in light.

A/N: 1000 words! Wheeee. I post. You read. Then, you review. Yes? Please? WOO! More soon; editing of the great doom novel must commence in earnest.

Please Review!


	258. Chapter 258

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLVIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_No Dialog_

The flame of his presence reaches out to touch her, hotter than the fire beside which she dances, hotter than the fire of wine and wild urges that flows in her vein. She accepts his arms around her, his hands on her hips, but she will sway in near-stillness with him for only a moment. Then she is darting, dancing, laughing, leaping as the deer, slipping through his fingers like living foam. He is faster, but she is never where he thinks she will be – she is wild, yes, but in a human way; he is the Hunter, the wood enfleshed.

Ripe pine odors touch her, and the musk of his body, and jasmine; the burning of fruit and incense woods is a sweet smelling smoke that wreaths her movements as she passes around the jumping flames, and she relishes the cool and refreshing touch of the breeze that comes now and then across the water.

No words pass between them, no exclamation, not a breath of sound or dialog. They speak with eyes as they dance, and Sesshomaru leans over her and Kagome bends in lithe and lissome ways which she did not know were possible. To every move she makes, he has a counter; she laughs silent and breathless behind the whirl of her sleeves, presses herself tight against his body and lets him kiss her behind the shadow of his hair as it falls forward and covers both their faces from view.

Sesshomaru feels her heartbeat pounding against his hand as he holds her.

The flute rises high in the music around them, steals from the wail of the wolf.

The beat of the drums ripple the surface of the water.

From the outside, eyes watch on, seeing a marvelous and terrible thing – for in these moments, whether it be the wine or the woman, Sesshomaru has none of the great control for which he is famous. His aura has sprung free around him, a cocoon that wraps a butterfly of violet power in a tender embrace. His reward is stinging as a rain of fire, pure and lovely as the snow; even to him, Kagome's power will not submit – not fully. He has drawn it out of her for just that reason; because it is a part of her loveliness, though it is dangerous...and yet _not_ dangerous.

_Not dangerous at all._

To those who are watching, two contrasts are apparent, two striking differences in hue. Kagome is darker of skin and darker of hair; she is mortal and young and lovely as humans can be. Sesshomaru, tall, pale, his hair so white – but light as he seems in appearance, his is the darker power; a pressure unmatchable, overwhelming, gold as the sun and deadly -

And yet again, inevitably, the eye is drawn to the woman; for without effort, her power flows to match him, and without end, the waters of her soul quench the gold, unmatchable power. The unmatchable, matched.

And a few of those watching are envious; and a few begin to understand; and one, only one, thinks on the words of the Great Serpent's daughter, and that one smiles to herself in satisfaction.

But no one speaks; a single word would destroy the moment.

A/N: 550 words! Ah...yeah...didn't...mean to write this? I was supposed to go to bed. . But, I did! So, yay! The next chapter is mostly written too, but I DO need to sleep now...so...more later! Prooobably tomorrow. And

Please Review!


	259. Chapter 259

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLIX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Talisman_

The dancing continued even into the third hour past midnight, but by that time Kagome was growing hot and tired, and she followed Sesshomaru very willingly when he held out a hand to lead her away from the fire. They walked past many couples and groups entwined in lust, and past piles of sleeping kits. For a moment she paused; she could see Shippou's bright hair peeking out from beneath a pile of Wolf cubs, who had cast themselves upside town and topsy-turvy across her kit. Rin's dark, disarrayed ponytail stuck out at an angle beside him, and behind the twitching ear of one sleeping cub Kagome could make out a bit of orange-brush tail that she thought was Shippou's, too.

With a smile and no trepidation in her heart now, Kagome crossed the nine stones and their engraved virtues, and took Sesshomaru's hand again on the other side. The wine was still warm within her, but the heat of the fire faded quickly from her skin, and she was glad to feel his body close against her, pale as the hidden moon but warm as a furnace. He did not lead her far – just far enough that they were away from all the others who had wandered out of the Pavilion and into the night.

On a low hill covered in green grass and blooming flowers, Sesshomaru lowered himself gracefully to crossed legs, and Kagome settled beside him. She leaned back against her hands and looked up at the sky and let out a breath of delight; in the dark of the new moon, an infinite expanse of stars is painted clear and brilliant across heaven.

"Oh, lovely -"

"Kagome?"

Sesshomaru followed the line of her gaze upward, and she spoke in a faint and musing tone.

"Years ago, far in the future, I learned that the stars are balls of hot gas that burn in an empty void of space. I thought it was oddly romantic, all these lonely fires streaming light to strangers they will never see. What do you think about them, Sesshomaru?"

"About the stars?"

He closed his eyes, contemplating, and she nudged him with one shoulder.

"Yes, silly, the stars."

He opened one of his closed eyes and peered at her intensely, as if to transmit his irritation at her impertinent address, but she said nothing, just smiled, waited – he let out a very slight sigh and closed his eye again.

"I did not think about them until you came to point them out; I know no stories or explanations such as you have learned."

For a moment he appeared distracted, and then spoke very slowly.  
>"When...I was a pup, I wondered...sometimes. About what they are; but there was no one I could ask. It was a foolish question, anyway."<p>

He did not say anything else, and Kagome moved closer, pressed herself tightly against his side and leaned her head against his chest; she was not tall enough to reach his shoulder.

"You must have thought _something_, though. If you asked yourself, didn't you also have an answer? Even if it was a _foolish_ answer."

Sesshomaru's eyes opened the tiniest sliver. She smiled and rubbed her cheek against his robe.

"I...had an answer – or I thought I did. But it is, indeed, foolish, and it is not true."

"Won't you tell me anyway, Sesshomaru?

When he finally answered, his voice had gone soft; very soft.

"I do not remember when I first noticed the summer fireflies, but I do remember that once I had noticed them, I wanted them to last forever. They do not; they are small and brief, though mysterious, and beautiful -"

Sesshomaru fell silent for a long moment and then began again.

"Beautiful, yes. I wondered, too, about the stars – as bright as the fireflies, but so slow in their movements, so slow that I could never catch them at it. And so I decided that they were one thing; the stars, and the fireflies. That the fireflies were brief because they never lingered long away from their homes in the far away sky -"

But then he stopped speaking. Kagome, too, did not say a word, merely pressed closer to him, if that was possible, and closed her eyes. She would keep this story close, and treasure it as the talisman of trust that it is; she does not think there are many to whom he would tell such things.

Sesshomaru looked down at her relaxed and content features – looked down at his mate – _his mate, _before the Great Court – and he shivered, feeling a tiny flicker of ill feeling, thinking of all the things he had expected to go wrong tonight, and how none of them had happened.

_It was changed by your power, Kagome. Changed just by your presence...by it being you, and not some other woman who is now mine. _

Even now he feels a slight disgust at that thought – _some other woman_. Only Kagome is strong enough – strange enough. Only Kagome -

And for the first time that night Sesshomaru allowed himself to contemplate the words that had been spoken by Orochi's daughter – not about himself, but about his mate.

_Mother to One Thousand Generations. But how, when I did not intend that she be mother to even one? _ _Not when all her sons and daughters, all the thousand generations of which the Serpent speaks, will be hanyou. There will be no pure blood in the future of my house; my heirs will be like my brother – doomed to fight never-ending the beast that burns in only half their blood. _

Sesshomaru looks down at Kagome and for the first time in many days feels a conflict within himself. She has done him honor with her learning and her comportment, especially tonight; her growing feelings are strong and obvious, and he cannot deny that he is pleased by them – but...

_She is still human. She is still a mortal woman. _

He stares at the shadow of her eyelashes on her cheeks, hears the echo of her words replay themselves in his thoughts.

"_Years ago, far in the future...in an empty void of space...oddly romantic...streaming light to strangers they will never see." _

"Lovely and dangerous, and precious...my mortal mate, something will have to be done."

_Something will have to be done about that._

A/N: 1100 words! Whee! So...teeheehee. I shan't say anything more than what's been said about what you want me to say. I shan't. I shaaaaan't. ::cackles:: Onward! Next, Sesshomaru is confronted by his dear grandmama, and then we will be returning to Edo...and its forests...and all the madness and confusion therein. XD

Please Review!


	260. Chapter 260

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Blood_

That night, the first of three unexpected things came to torment Sesshomaru. It came in the form of words from Hoshihikari; he had not wanted to see his grandmother again, but when Kagome was asleep in her own bed, and he had disentangled her arms from around his neck and shoulders, had disentangled his hair from her fingers, had disentangled his attention from her sleeping face – then, in the long, dim gallery outside Kagome's rooms Hoshihikari had cornered him.

Her voice had remained quiet, almost a whisper – far too low to disturb Kagome, and low enough to escape the notice of lingering servants and guests.

"You are not the first son of this House to take a woman I had not approved – a human woman, too, just like your father...but not like him, either, because you – you do indeed have good taste. This power she possesses – it is the last key."

"I do not understand the _meaning_ of your -"

She took one step closer to him and snapped her shining fan shut.

"You are the product of many centuries of interest and intent, Sesshomaru! Yes, your half brother is an interesting experiment, to be sure, but _you_ are the One our line has been seeking through all the long ages since time began. Once I thought that your father might be that one, but he disproved my belief in him with his failure, his death at the hands of a human, for a human..."

Her features curdled with distaste.

"No, it was not he. And then...then came the rumors about you, rumors that have only grown. You have a power that is more than _youki_, they say, a power that is greater and brighter than any the world has known in many centuries – and so, indeed, does she; I have _tasted_ it. But what of you?"

Sesshomaru stood still and silent. His thoughts raced over things that had seemed strange in his life, and which now were explained -

_Mother's insistence I would destroy myself, seeking the First Path. Father's pleasure that I had done so; the long silence from anyone else who might have called themselves Pack. Because...I was dangerous? And the slow worming of one and another of these people into my life once I had reached my hundredth year, once I had begun to tame, with Shizuka's aid, the immensity of my power in all its variations -_

"Is it true, Sesshomaru?"

His grandmother's voice jerked him from his thoughts.

"You must tell me now, is it true?"

He stared at her, a muscle working in his jaw. He considered the words she had spoke about his brother – _an interesting experiment_ – and then he turned away.

"Hoshihikari-dono. I do not know if I am this –_ One_ that you are seeking. Neither do I know, not knowing _that_, if I am strong enough to destroy you, for I have never seen or heard of your prowess in battle. What I do know is that if you prod at my power, if you seek to use my mate, or to use me through her – I will try. I will try _so_ _hard_ that one of us, or both of us, will surely be killed. Either way, you will have failed, for either the line of this House will be ended, and the blood that you so cherish dead with me – or you will not be here to see it."

For one moment of silence, he stood, back turned to her – and though she could not see his face, Hoshihikari knew that anything she said in this moment might destroy her. He was accompanied by a shadow of power that she knew better than to defy, and until he had moved out of her sight, she did not dare to breathe the long, formless sigh that had been building up inside her.

She spoke to herself, quietly and smiled at the retreating shadow of her fear.

"You are the One, you are the one...you are the one we have been waiting for. And your mate – she, too, is surely ours..."

Silent then, she went to her own room.

A/N: 700 words! Bwahahaha. I feel particularly evil right now...and I have to figure out what to do with dear Inuyasha before I can post the next chapter, because he is being a twit. Suggestions, oh readers? Cause If he keeps being a twit I might make him human and kill him with the flu. .  
>Please Review!<p> 


	261. Chapter 261

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Wrecked_

"_Your hanyou blood has caused you nothing but trouble; it gives you strength with one hand, and takes with all of its others._"

Through the long hours of a day made weary by heavy thoughts, Inuyasha has been hearing Miroku's words. In bits and pieces they torment him, because in a way he knows his friend is right. He has _seen it all _now; he knows the story that led up to his birth better than any of those who participated in those long ago events – and if his father had not come to places where he should not have been, if his mother had been a _normal woman_, had screamed, had leaped back, had done _anything_ but step forward, anything but what she had done -

_Then I wouldn't be here; or I would be somebody different. _

Once, when he was small, in the days right after his mother had died, Inuyasha had come upon a ship, wrecked on the dangerous rocks of a snowy coastline. He had seen the men spilling out into the water from the hole that had been gouged in the wooden hull, a gaping wound that turned and showed its face to the sky from below the waterline before the ship smashed to pieces against the rocks. The sight had made impression on him, for he had had as yet little experience with death; the blood in the water, the splinters of the wreck – the power of the sea, all had touched him deeply.

Now he feels like he is that ship, like he has crashed against some unseen reef and now all that is meaningful has been torn out of him; he is wrecked on the shoals of memory that rise within him, unbidden.

His wander through the wood has brought him past the Goshinboku to the well, and when he sees it there are other memories, worse than those that don't belong to him.

_The girl I always insulted and forgot; the girl I left behind over and over. The girl who never, ever left me, even when I was too stupid to realize -_

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I'm sorry – why aren't you, damn it! Why aren't you here so I can tell you I'm sorry? Kagome – Kagome!"

But there was, of course, no answer. There was no hand on his hair or his shoulder, no warm and sudden scent; no promise. The one night he had spent with her, loved her as the woman she was – that night was a memory of a pain, and all the nights since – and so he thought back, and back, back to the last happiness.

_It was here; she brought me here, and she told me...she told me she wasn't going back to the future any more. She told me whatever time I lived in, that was her time, and only then. She told me she would stay by my side; she renewed the promise she made, the promise of forever. She told me she would never leave me as long as I wanted her – but I..._

"I sent you away, didn't I, Kagome? Please come back. I'd do anything, just for you – just so you – so you'd come back."

He sat on the grass beside the well and leaned his head back against the old, worn wood. He closed his eyes and tightened his fists on the clover, and did his best to ignore the tears running down his face. There was no one to see, anyway.

When the moment had passed, Inuyasha stood, resolute now, and walked from the clearing with the well at its center to a calm pool near the river, where water overflowed and stood still, reflecting the forest canopy.

He stared down at his own reflection – amber-bright eyes, hair the color of a winter wolf's fur – those Inu ears –

"_Your hanyou blood has caused you nothing but trouble -"_

He is running then, running back to the village; he has made up his mind; he knows what he has to do.

_What I should've done from the beginning – when I decided – when I decided I wanted her. Kagome...I'll do it for you, Kagome._

He thought that maybe, when it was safe she would come back again.

"Miroku! Miroku!"

He shouts loud enough to hurt his own ears and startle half the village – but not Miroku, who has been waiting for this moment since he began to speak the previous night. He comes out of Kaede's hut and stands on the path that runs through the village.

"I'm here, Inuyasha, you don't have to keep scaring everyone -"

Inuyasha skids to a stop in front of Miroku and looks him frankly in the face.

"Can you do it, Miroku? Can you do what you said?"

A/N: 800 words! Inuyasha is on a rampage, or on a roll – or something. Whatever it is, he's on it, and he's not getting off it until the very last stop. I will only say this, for those of you sitting there like this O.O screaming NOOOOOOO. Things are never what they seem..especially not at first glance. Also, Miroku is not an idiot. Also also . teeheehee. If I made it easy for you, what would be the fun in that? So more soon (I'm already almost done with 262) and

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	262. Chapter 262

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Submission_

For a long, calculated moment, Miroku stares at Inuyasha – and then looks down at his hand, rubs his fingers against the palm. It is a learned habit, from the long years in which he bore his terrible curse. Then he looks up, and smiles genially.

"What I said? What did I say, Inuyasha?"  
>The explosion he expected comes without a wait.<p>

"What do you mean, what did you say! You said -"

Inuyasha stopped then, because he can barely bring himself to say it out loud. He stopped, and took a deep breath, and when she spoke again all the anger, all the frustration had poured out of him like water from a jug.

"You said you could make me _human_."

Inuyasha said it urgently, with emphasis, and then again, deflated, quiet, almost sad.

"You said you could make me human, and I – you're right, okay? That's the only chance I've got, so – I'll take it."

He swallowed.

"I'll submit – I'll let you do whatever it is you have to do, just -"

"But Inuyasha, you've misunderstood. I asked what you wanted – I didn't say I had the power to do one thing or the other."  
>The anger is back, and the roar in Inuyasha's voice with it.<br>"Then why did you even say anything!"

"Because I am not able to do such a thing, but I know someone who is; someone stronger than I am – the one who forged the Beads of Suppression with which the Kazaana was bound."

Inuyasha scowled at him for a long moment, and then nodded his head.

"Alright, then. Tell me where I can find this guy, and I'll go and -"

"And nothing, Inuyasha. If I am not with you, I don't think you'll be able to get within fifty miles of the place this individual calls home...and that's a generous estimate."

"Who _is_ this guy?"

Miroku's expression twitched.

"I am not speaking of a _guy_ – neither is _she_ human. But she is not like any youkai you've met before, either...if she really _is_ youkai after all."

For a long, incredulous minute, Inuyasha attempted to stare down Miroku, as if he could change the truth into something else just by willing it to be so.

Nothing changed.

Miroku stood with the same infuriating smile on his face, an implacable Buddha of mischief that Inuyasha could sense, even if he was unsure of its direction.

"Miroku, I swear if you're jerking me around -"

But the violet eyes of his friend opened wide and serious.

"Make no mistake, Inuyasha, I am completely serious about this thing. I would have suggested her as someone who could help us long ago, when we were fighting Naraku, except that her power is of a kind that will only work for someone who is willing."

Miroku fixed Inuyasha with his stare again, and Inuyasha stood still, feeling a strange tickle of power run over his skin – Miroku's power, familiar and not.

"Three days, Inuyasha."

"Huh?"

Inuyasha's mouth hung open in confusion.  
>"In three days, I will bring you to her. It will take me that long to convince Sango to let me go with you – unless she wants to come, too, in which case I don't think I'll be able to prevent her. You have that long to be sure you have made up your mind."<p>

Miroku turned away and left Inuyasha standing in the dusty village road. He smiled to himself; that had not taken long...and it was good, too, for the help he had in mind was of the impatient kind.

A/N: 600 words! So Inuyasha is off to find some help...he thinks. Miroku is more awesome than you give him credit for...even if Inuyasha is a complete twit. But think about it: if you want to make someone accept themselves, and you can't make them walk a mile in someone else's shoes...change the shoes. Or put some on your silly bare feet, Inuyasha. Onward once more!

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	263. Chapter 263

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Tire_

It had taken only two days for Miroku to convince Sango that it was in all their best interest for Inuyasha to meet the _person_ he has in mind. She wasn't happy about _helping_ Inuyasha – he doesn't deserve it, in her mind, and perhaps she is right – but the help Miroku is trying to give him is not exactly what it seems on the surface.

By the time Miroku had explained all his thoughts to her, his entire plan, she was smiling in a wicked way that almost made _him_ reconsider – but it was too late for that, and Miroku thought he knew exactly what would happen when Inuyasha was made human – he was looking forward to it, because it would surely be _most_ amusing to watch.

_I give him a week on the outside – three __or four__ days is more likely. But we'll see. __We'll see...how long he lasts._

For now, Inuyasha's endurance was still a hanyou's endurance, and Miroku and Sango had been suffering that for that last day and a half. Inuyasha had allowed them only two brief rests the first day, and had woken them at dawn after only six hours of sleep; Sango had not been amused, but Inuyasha's jumpiness, his irritated irascibility had given way, after another eight hours of trekking onward, to a limp-eared, worried posture that gave away his nervousness.

Miroku reminded himself that they were seeking a place and a person who would be able to bind away the darker half of Inuyasha's nature, and that Inuyasha was more aware of this than either him or Sango; Sango only muttered to herself, glared darkly at the back of Inuyasha's head, and refused to speak a word in his direction.

That night, the two of them were so tired that Miroku didn't even bother with a fire; the sleeping bags that he and Sango had were warm enough to keep them warm on a much colder night, and as he did every time he used the zippered cocoon, Miroku thanked Kagome in his thoughts for being kind enough to consider her friends this way.

The thought was more poignant on that night, far away from her and all the adventures they had shared, far from a safe place and far from any knowledge about how she might be. Hie did not think she would approve of what he was doing; she had never wanted Inuyasha to be human, and she did not approve of _teaching someone a lesson _in the sense Miroku now meant to do so, but...

_She has made her choices, and Inuyasha has made his...and I, too, must make mine. _

He was still tired in the morning when Inuyasha's pacing woke him, but he gritted his teeth and pushed himself up and rubbed his arms against the chill morning outside his sleeping bag.

"Calm down, Inuyasha. Even if we don't rush at demon speed, we'll still make it to her house before noon today – and it's not like we have an appointment, you know. She may not even _be_ there. Are you prepared to wait?"

Inuyasha spoke shortly.

"I'll wait."

He said nothing else, but Miroku was glad when the started walking again that it was a far more sedate pace.

The trees grew thick and close about them, and then gave way to a narrow, rocky shore. Miroku led the way across it, and then seemed to disappear – Inuyasha's eyes opened wide, and he stopped, but Sango let out a little gasp and ran forward, disappearing into the same space.

Inuyasha walked very slowly forward, until he could feel the tickle over his skin that he knew was a barrier of some strange power – not quite _youki_, but it wasn't _not youki_ either. Inuyasha stepped through it with a shudder, and then stopped again and stared ahead. Miroku was three paces ahead of him, with Sango on his arm, but the two of them weren't what had attracted Inuyasha's attention.

Behind them, where before there had been a clear, narrow shore, there was a much wider space and on it the ruin of some ancient, glorious hall. The sight stirs something inside Inuyasha, because he has seen a similar place before; the mansion that was once his mother's home, gutted by fire and battle and death. He stared hard at the place revealed by passage through the barrier, and then stepped forward to stand beside Miroku.

"What now?"

"And now...we wait. When she is here – when she is ready to see us, she will come for us...or she will come to send us away. Either way, we must wait."

Inuyasha let out an impatient _harrumph_, but he sat on a boulder, staring at the house, and left Miroku and Sango in silence with only one final question.

"Who _is_ this person, Miroku? What's her name?"

"Her name is Hoshihikari; do you know her, Inuyasha?"

Miroku waited a few long minutes of silence before he tried again.

"Inuyasha?"

"No! No – I don't know anyone by that name."

It had sounded just the smallest bit familiar, at first – but Inuyasha was sure now. He didn't know it.

_Why would I, anyway? This is Miroku's friend, not mine -I'll just be glad if I can be rid of this curse, this...blood._

He ignored the whisper in the back of his mind that told him Kagome would not be happen with him, if she came back – and the whisper that said even hope was foolish – that nothing but the darkness lasts forever.

_I'm just so tired. I'm so tired of fighting all the time -_

For though he had not spoken of it, he had already begun to feel a difference without Tetsusaiga by his side...or Kagome.

_She was the only one who could calm the demon rage. The only one who could bring me back from over the brink – only Kagome. Only Kagome was ever strong enough; strange enough..._

A/N: Umm...a lot of words? XD 1000! Woo! And...teehee. Journey be begun and done...and now the waiting. Onward, yes? Yes! Don't die – remember – _all is not as it seems_ – though some things are. ::cackles:: Anybody going O.O yet? 264 soon...and of course

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	264. Chapter 264

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXIV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Stress_

While Inuyasha is smiling his bittersweet smile, unknowing that he shares his brother's thought, Miroku has gestured for Sango to choose a campsite and with his usual facility, he has endured her glare.

Almost at once she sees his point; there is nothing but flaky rock and boulders near them; only very near the house is there anything like smooth ground, and she is not sure it would be wise to be so close to this..._person_. The name means nothing to her, and the barrier was unsettling – this whole journey is unsettling, from its avowed reason, to Miroku's explanations...Kaede's agreement...Kagome's missing place...Shippou's missing laughter -

The journey itself was wrong, and Sango cannot shake the feeling that something terrible is going to happen just because they are here. She can hear Miroku's voice, reassuring her as he reassured her in the village - _"It is only a temporary binding, only a bond that can restrain the willing – not the wild, not if he doesn't want it, or wants to leave it behind. It will be something like the beads I wore for so long; she made them, too. Don't worry, Sango."_

"Don't worry, Sango – sure, right – that's all I do these days is worry, worry about Kagome, about what that bastard is doing to her, and about Miroku, and if he's gone _insane _ - I already _know _Inuyasha has..."

Her muttered words don't make it even to Inuyasha's ears, but they make her feel better, and finally she settled on a place where the soft sand and grasses that front the ruin had spilled over their bounds and were encroaching upon the territory of the rocks.

"Come here, Miroku, and bring your bag."

She began to build a fire when he had come close enough, and very soon they were settled together beside the fire. Sango stared into the fire with tight eyes and a furious, sad expression on her face; she startled easily and Miroku found himself on his back with her arm pressed across his throat when he reached for her shoulder – she let him go at once, and Miroku had not been hurt, but he was not happy to see her so tense and distracted.

"What is bothering you, Sango?"

She twitched her head back and forth sharply and returned to staring at the fire.

"Nothing; it's just – what did Kagome used to say? _Stress_ – that's all, just stress."

"Kagome used to say that, yes, but it wasn't true then either and we all knew it. I know you weren't happy about travelling with Inuyasha again -"

"It's not Inuyasha, Miroku! Or – well, it's not _just _him. It's the...the emptiness, the missing spaces, do you understand? No more packing enough for five, or making sure Shippou isn't snitching the apples, or talking with Kagome along the way...it's not...it doesn't seem right. And then there _is_ Inuyasha, only he's – he seems dangerous now, Miroku, not just because of what he did to Kagome but because Kagome isn't here. No one could control her but him."

Miroku had asked for her troubles, but he had not expected this flood.

"I must admit, I've worried about Inuyasha too, Sango – but not because Kagome isn't with him, precisely. I worry because he doesn't have Tetsusaiga; that sword could have saved him from himself, but that is not an option any more."

"Miroku, why are we waiting here? Now that we've brought Inuyasha here, can't we just leave him and go home? Plan our wedding – talk to Kaede – help in the village – he can manage, can't he? Of course he can, he's Inuyasha -"

But Miroku interrupted her reflexive answer to her own question with a denial.

"Ah – that's all true now, Sango, but what about when he's human? If Hoshihikari chooses she can bind his demon half – I'm sure of it. She imbued the beads of my grandfather's rosary with the power to thwart the wind tunnel, and because of that my grandfather and my father were saved long enough to live meaningful lives despite Naraku. I have seen her perform other strange feats, and her presence is weighty with age, even though she does not look a tenth as old as she will claim to be if you ask.

"When Inuyasha is human he is going to be faced with more than a single night hiding somewhere – look at his feet, Sango. He has no shoes, how do you think tender human soles will like the rocks of this beach? His robe is better than any armor I have ever seen, and proof against fire – but feel that wind; how warm do you think it will keep him?

"Inuyasha has no sleeping bag to keep him warm in the night – or if he does, he surely stuffed it in some corner of Kaede's and never thought of it again after that. I do not think a human body will be amenable to nights of no sleep spent in the trees pondering the moon; I do not think a human body will be pleased with eight hour hikes at top speed with short rests between."

"Miroku, you -"

"I only made a suggestion, Sango. I only lead the way – he's done the rest himself."

A/N:900 words. And it's teaching time! Next up...Enter Hoshihikari, she who is indeed the same person as Inu Grandma...but do keep in mind of course, we know who she is, in that respect...none of these people do. Not even Miroku, who knows her only as she carves her seals of power...

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	265. Chapter 265

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Ruin_

Mostly ignored by Miroku and Sango, but glad for their company all the same, Inuyasha spent two nights and two days waiting on the rocky beach near the ruined Hall, hoping that someone would come who would be able to save him.

Late in the evening of that second day, long after he had given up hope that someone would appear, a figure came out through the ruined, broken door and stood in the light of the moon's thin crescent. He could see at once that it was female in shape, but tall – obviously youkai, he thought, until he was close to her – and then again, perhaps she was not; her eyes were...strange, bright, almost the same color as Inuyasha's own, and her hair, though bound up tightly in a shining knot, was the same rich white as his hair, too -

For a moment suspicion struck him hard as steel, and he stood forward unafraid and challenged her.

"Are you Hoshihikari, the one who can build a seal to restrain a demon's power? You are Inu, aren't you – are you a relative of Sesshomaru?"

As he spoke, she stepped forward into the light, and made herself more easy to study. She had the appearance of a young woman still, but the great age Miroku had hinted at was still visible in her face – something about the eyes, at the corner of her lips and in the sharpness of her expression.

"I am Hoshihikari, and I have been known to do such things...but Sesshomaru..."

Again, she took a step forward, and Inuyasha forced himself to stay still though every bone in his body was full of a sudden warning, a cry to flee – flee _now_ -

"_Sesshomaru_, you say? My...what a deadly sounding name."

Hoshihikari opened her fan and held it across her face. The bright gaze of her infuriating eyes became no less direct, no less penetrating; she spoke from behind the silk, thinking to herself what an interesting night this had turned out to be.

_And I have not even been home an hour. Well, my hanyou grandson, I wonder what you have come to visit me for...and in the company of this priest. My, but he has grown up well..._

Her eyes drink Miroku, the compelling lavender stare, the fresh, young, body – but Inuyasha is impatient for a real answer.

_I should give him one; the one he wants, of course._

"Yes, a deadly name – but I'm afraid I haven't heard it before. Who is he, _do_ tell?"

And she smiled to herself to see how easy and quick was Inuyasha's relaxation. It was Miroku who stepped forward to give her an answer, and Hoshihikari continued to allow her gaze to linger, amusing herself with the spite in the unknown, silent woman's eyes.

"Hoshihikari-san, I -"

An amused tinkle of laughter interrupted him, and Hoshihikari waved the fan at him apologetically, covering her mouth with her hand.

"It's nothing, just a thought – you sounded like someone else I just met recently."

Miroku smiled faintly, but didn't ask.

"Of course. I hope you don't mind the unexpected visit, but Inuyasha is a friend of mine and we thought...that perhaps you could help him. The Sesshomaru he mentioned is his brother; oh – and this is my intended bride, Sango."

Sango bowed shortly, but did not let her gaze stray from the strange woman's face. She was not sure she liked this _Hoshihikari-san_ who smiled so easily at Miroku – and certainly, she did not trust her.

"Charming, charming...well, I suppose I should invite you in. Sake for all of you, yes? And perhaps dinner, I know humans grow hungry at night..."

She had not answered Inuyasha's _other _question, had not said whether she was Inu or some other youkai beast – but that she was not human she admitted openly, even as she attempted to see to their comfort.

Neither Sango or Inuyasha was sure how the ruined Hall before them could offer even a hint more comfort than their chosen place on the rocky beach, never mind sake or hot food, but neither were they inclined to argue, especially when Miroku had nodded and was already beginning to pack his things.

"Hurry inside; I'll leave a light on for you, shall I?"

With a rustle of silk and those parting words, Hoshihikari was gone, as swift as she had appeared. Miroku and Sango took only a few minutes to douse their fire and pack their food and sleeping bags, but in that time Inuyasha's impatient nature had time to nip at his thoughts and send him pacing across the rocks.

Sango held tightly to Miroku's hand as he led her forward, unconcerned; one step behind, Inuyasha followed, and stepped with them through the crumbled door into a sudden blaze of light.

A/N: 800 words! Hoshihikari begins to...well, you'll see. And I'm sure Sesshomaru is glad she's gone and off tormenting someone else and not him for a while – he'd love to know that it's Inuyasha she's tormenting, but he doesn't, poor him. Ah well...onward we go again, as long as my brain shall last!

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	266. Chapter 266

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXVI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Degrade_

Hoshihikari left more than a light on for them; she left a path of fine lamps, lit not more than three feet apart, each one illuminating the way they were meant to go...but it was almost unbelievable after what they had expected to see.

Rich carpets and fine rugs, hanging silks and folded screens – the lamps were flickering flame, but each wick sat in a bowl of fragrant oil, and the bowls themselves were fine, carved jade. Here and there Inuyasha finds hints of a half familiar scent, something beneath the smoke of the oil and the curling wisps of incense that flow here and there, teasing his senses, never enough to overwhelm him but always present.

He cannot find the scent of the female that went before him, unless it is in that half-remembered hint beneath smoke, but he is more concerned with looking everywhere around him than with trying to determine the identity of a stranger. Miroku leads the way as if he has been here before, with Sango close behind him, holding back her questions with the same tight hand she has used to reign in her temper.

On cushions of lush red silk they found Hoshihikari, and she was as lovely and distressing as an opal floating in a river of blood. Miroku sat across from her, choosing a cushion for himself, and Sango and Inuyasha followed his example. It was only when Hoshihikari had leaned forward to pour sake for her three guests, and a silent, self-effacing figure had set the low table between them with steaming dishes that she finally turned her attention fully on Inuyasha. He stared back, confused and defiant; in that moment more than the first, as he traced the lines of her face with his eyes, he thought she resembled Sesshomaru.

_But she says she doesn't know him, and she doesn't know me – and Miroku trusts her._

"So – tell me, Inuyasha; what does a hanyou have to do with a monk and a slayer of youkai? What does a hanyou need from one known only for her sealing of demonic powers? Does this brother of yours trouble you? Do you have a mighty foe? If that is the case I cannot help you; my power does not work on the _unwilling_."

Her eyes gleamed with promise or amusement or both, but Inuyasha didn't care. Now that he was here, he wanted only to be done with all this – done with it for good, forever; he would have a normal life, a human life; his soul would be free...

"I don't need anything like that; I want your help for myself. I'm hanyou – but I don't want to be. I don't want to be – I have never wanted to be!"

He brought his fist down onto the table, and only Sango's quick hands saved her bowl of rice from complete destruction. Hoshihikari's stare became more intent, more..._more_. The more she looks at him the more Inuyasha is made aware that she _is_ youkai, she _is_ Inu - but just as the moment reached its peak and he was on the verge of demanding the answer to a question he couldn't even formulate, she reached forward and took his chin in her fingers. She turned his face this way and that under the light, and the expression on her face grew very odd.

"Well, well...so I see, so I see. But I do not know why you came to _me_ – I can bind youkai powers, but I cannot release or increase them-"

Inuyasha laughed, a low sound, and then barked words that startled her into a stiff-backed stillness.

"Release them? Increase them? No, you're just right for what I want. I want – to be human. I want to be rid of my demon blood! I want – never to see this face in a mirror again, to be free...to be free from the beast inside me!"

Without thought, disregarding the deception she has worked to hide her identity, her knowledge, its depths and sources, Hoshihikari stood suddenly tall and stared down at Inuyasha as if he were mad.

"For many ages – many ages, I have tasted troubles of many kinds. I have seen youkai willing to seal away their souls and wait for another age of the world; I have seen men and youkai suffering the curse of another, yet strong enough of will to bind the curse they bear from harm. I have even seen your kind before, hanyou, walking with a foot in either world...but never, never have I met one with the powers you must possess who was willing to throw all those away."

"Being hanyou has brought me nothing but trouble -"

"Perhaps, perhaps, but there are many who say that about their lives."

But it is more than that which distressed her; much more than that. She has spent the many years of her life, the equivalent of many, many lives of men studying the power of youkai, the greatness of their nature, the paths of blood and energy on which the beast walks within. To turn that away – turn it off – how Inuyasha could even consider it, she cannot understand.

"Have you thought that perhaps it is not that Inuyasha is hanyou that is the trouble, but that Inuyasha is Inuyasha?"

He growled and did not answer her. She thought that probably meant _all the time_ and stopped to consider.

Could she do it? Yes, she believed so. What Miroku believed about her power, the farce she sold to those who came seeking her aid about _willingness –_ that was as far from the truth as could be. She had bound full demons and half, had shifted great powers; who else but she had carved the words of power into the great fang of her son, the words that had sealed the Dragon Lord, bound Ryuukotsusei to a century of sleep.

Closer, she peered at Inuyasha.

_A century of sleep...until that fool broke the seal and this one...this one slew the Dragon Lord. Hanyou or not, he bears a strain of that coveted blood..._

The blood he wished to suppress -

"Very well. I shall do as you have asked – I will bind the Inu inside you, I will degrade you – I will strip from you your power. But I do not do this lightly, or with pleasure, boy. Come with me."

Inuyasha stood, and with him Miroku and Sango stood too – but Hoshihikari shook her head and set her mouth in a grim line.

"Only the hanyou. This...will not be pleasant."

A/N: 1100 words...bwahahahahahaha. I feel so evil. I think I like it. Let's see...one more chapter of Inu, I think – maybe two. He's not going to like this – he's not going to like it at all...but at least he'll be pleased with the results...for a while. We'll see. And then...back to Sesshomaru, and his Kagome, and two more surprises. Do you think he'll like them? (I don't.)

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	267. Chapter 267

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXVII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Blend_

Hoshihikari brought Inuyasha deep within the _shiro_, past many screens and galleries, past chambers empty and dark, and halls lighted and full of laughing shadows – but all the doors were shut. The scents of many demons taunt Inuyasha in this place, but none of them are scents that he knows, and none of them share the strange, familiar hints of Hoshihikari's scent.

The room she finally stopped at was bare of all things, and faced the sea. He could smell it, taste it, and when she crossed the room and pulled open the shutters of the far wall, he could see it, crashing in wide, white-capped waves against the rocky shore.

"Sit. Tell me of the reasons why you wish your power to be bind, and I will make the seal appropriate to your needs."

"My needs are -"

"Not only the binding of the blood is the trouble with you, boy, but the binding of your divided and warring soul. The reasons that a person wishes a thing – they are more important than the wish. They give the wish meaning. Sometimes a man wishing for life is wishing for vengeance; sometimes a man wishing for vengeance is wishing for life. It all depends – now, you will speak, and I will do my work, or you will leave and never speak of this place again."

Inuyasha sat facing the sea, and after a long minute of silence began to speak. He heard her rustling behind him, gathering something – but he tuned out the sounds, and focused on the washing of the water, and the sound of the waves -

"I hurt the woman I loved, because I could never control the demon inside me, and instead I let it control me. I hurt everyone who ever cared for me – me, the bastard son of an Inu – and I lost the sword my father left it; I lost because I tried to hurt that woman. My own mate, you know? She was my own mate. But...she's not mine anymore. I should never have touched her; I knew what would happen..."

Hoshihikari hears him saying _I was afraid, I was afraid and I hated myself_ – but she also hears the other story in his rambling pain.

_And so, Sesshomaru did not choose his mate; it was this hanyou that chose her for him, and forced her on him...but you did not kill her, Sesshomaru. Why, I wonder, did you not kill her?_

But she cannot ask these questions of Inuyasha. Instead, she stores her knowledge for later and lets Inuyasha continue speaking – of the blows he leveled against his mate, of the power of his father's fang, to seal his demon blood...but she knew that, didn't she?

_I am the only one who knows the ancient arts and all the ways of binding a demonic power. And now...let us see how well you suffer the fullness of those arts, inflicted on your unnatural flesh._

"Ready yourself, boy. The pain – it is not to be trifled with, and it will only grow."

And then it strikes him – immediate, sudden, sharp. He hears her chanting and though he tries to focus on the words he cannot catch a single one; he tries to move, and cannot wrest control of a single muscle.

Lightning singes his veins. He feels it, gold, glorious lightning, the rage and power of the Inu trapped in his imperfect body, by his imperfect blood. The slush of his human self is too fragile a weft to hold the youkai tapestry, but the bits and pieces of that tapestry imprinted on his flesh are being sifted from his being like gold from a riverbed.

The pain is agonies of fire and ice. It pulls him thin, thin, thin, and when he can hold no more he opens his mouth and screams – but no sound comes out. He drags in air but it is never enough and always too much; his lungs are flat and pained and he _feels _his senses leaving him, the world deadening around him as if it is being covered by thick, clean wool.

Even in anguish of his flesh, even as he feels his ears ripped from the top of his head and dragged down to their _other place_, even as he feels claws receding, heat splintering in his blood -

Where are the sounds of the waves and the rocks moving on each other under the slick and hissing foam? Where is the smell of seaweed and salt and the silt of ages, the odors of the shifting endless sea? Where are the heartbeats by which he has always tracked his world, the scents of friend and maybe foe for which he has held a place of awareness at the edge of his consciousness?

Hoshihikari is watching him all the while, and she is the one who hears his silent scream, and she is the one who watches his twitching body, watches the color flow into his hair, watches it darken to shining, human black, watches him fall face forward to the floor, shaking, shaking, panting with the echoes of his terrible pain -

But he looks back at her with black eyes, not golden, and he knows it, knows it without looking because within him, as there is outside him, for the first time in his memory there is silence.

_Silence._

"Thank – thank...you -"

Hoshihikari bends over him and around his neck she wraps a length of carved beads, some wood, some jade, some ivory. When she has wrapped them three times, the ends come together and seal, and she steps back from him and stares down with an inscrutable face.

"It is done. You may never remove those beads; if you do, the seal will be undone, and the enchantment unraveled, and the halves of your soul will come together, blend so that they can never again be sundered."

"I understand."

His voice is quiet, subdued but content. He is too wrapped up in the newness of this _permanent_ condition to consider the real meaning behind her words; he reaches up and strokes the beads, feels their cool, carved surfaces, and then stands on shaky legs and bows to his _savior_.

"I am in your debt."

"Think nothing of it; your case – it interests me, I must admit. Come, now. We will go back to your friends, I insist you stay the night. You must be tired...and of course there's Miroku – I always relish a chance to try again with that one. He does have such lovely eyes."

A/N: 1100 words again...why are these so long suddenly? I have no idea. Does anyone care? Probably not. Is Inuyasha human now? Yes. Yes he is. Is he going to like it? Probably not for very long. Is Hoshihikari actually talking about getting it on with Miroku? Yes. Yes, she is. But hey, I could be even more evil. I could make her get it on with Inuyasha. Experiment, Level 2, anyone? ::cackles:: But I suppose poor Inuyasha's been through enough already...

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	268. Chapter 268

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXVIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Shield_

Inuyasha's stare widened at Hoshihikari's striking, offhand words, and then he flushed and strode swiftly down the long hallways before her, trying to find his way. He had to wait for her after the second turn; he couldn't follow his nose, and the long, similar stretches of _shoji _were as confusing as a maze.

She led him along, her face crinkled with silent laughter, and Inuyasha found himself conscious of the cold bare floor beneath his feet and the wind that had followed them from the open door near the sea. He shivered, and was at once discomforted and happy; human now, he was human now, and this was just part of the proof.

_But I wish I'd thought ahead and brought a heavier robe – or maybe that jacket Kagome brought for me, I know it's in a chest with all the other things...she left behind._

He surprised himself with the burning sensation in his eyes, the flash of sudden emotion - and the gruff wall he was accustomed to, the hiding place for all his uncomfortable feelings, that place was gone now, stolen with his youkai soul. Instead he rubbed at his eyes with the back of his sleeve and tried to calm the trembling of his heart even as the trembling of his body; he was glad when they finally came back to the room where Miroku and Sango waited, and gladder still to sit between his friends and ease his aching muscles.

Miroku looked up and smiled when Inuyasha came in; the new beads around his neck were powerful enough that he could sense them and their restraining purpose from where he sat.

"Inuyasha! How do you feel, now?"

"...Strange. Very – strange. You sound different, and you have no smell."

He did not mention the difference in the appearance of everything, the way the colors seemed to have been drained from the world, the way the dark corners are truly dark to him, invisible within their cloaks of shadow. His eyes darted uneasily from place to place; when food was brought and placed before him, even Hoshihikari's admonition that he should _eat to restore his strength_ was not enough to make him hungry. He couldn't _smell _the food; even the steam of the herbal tea brought him no clues, and Inuyasha tucked his hands into his sleeves and huddled forward against the cold.

With his face pressed against his knees Inuyasha missed Sango's concerned expression, the hand she reached out toward his back and then pulled away, angry and confused at her own desire to comfort him. Part of it is that now, he is human and therefore not dangerous, though she could barely bring herself to believe that he had actually gone through with it. Part of it is that she knows Kagome would be unhappy with all of them for enabling this fixation of Inuyasha's, for helping him make something of himself other than what he is.

She is quite certain now that there is no kindness in what has been done to Inuyasha, and in her heart of hearts she pitied him.

_Now he's just as powerless as the rest of us. Why would you do that, Inuyasha? Why would you give up your strength, why now? _

No matter how she looked at the question, she could not find an answer; she stared at the new beads wrapped around his neck, and contemplated their carved characters, and wondered if there was any point in holding on to her grudge when Inuyasha – the Inuyasha she had known, and aided, and been angry at – when that Inuyasha doesn't exist any more. She decided then and there to get to know this new Inuyasha.

_I'll be your help, because Miroku was right about one thing – you are surely going to need it, and you don't even know it yet._

She was ready to leave that place, despite its_ creature comforts_; she had not taken a like to Hoshihikari when they arrived, and she did not do so now, despite the placid smile and calm, quiet movements of their hostess. Hoshihikari leaned too close to Miroku when she poured their sake, spoke too quietly, too sensually from between parted, painted lips.

Sango tried to do her best to ignore it, but she could not ignore how easily Miroku seemed to take to Hoshihikari's casual flirting – not unusual, because even after he had proposed to her, and all the time that had passed since, she had seen him flirt with more women than she could count, but -

_Even here? We cross the borders between worlds, human and youkai, and even here he has a an 'old friend' waiting to spend time with him._

Once, the thought would have been spiteful, but too much time has passed. That particular pain, that portion of her heart is calloused; she feels only a flutter of what she felt the first time, and wonders idly as she sips at a third cup of sake whether one day, she will feel anything at all.

A/N: 850 words! And all I will say...is prepare for the evil. PREPARE FOR IT.

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	269. Chapter 269

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXIX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Misunderstand_

Miroku was watching Sango as well as Inuyasha, but he still had no trouble keeping up with Hoshihikari's tendency toward innuendo. He considered warning her about the strength of youkai liquors, but from the expression on her face he didn't think she would appreciate it if he mentioned it in front of their hostess – so he kept his silence.

He drank more carefully, himself, and he was more used to the strong sake, but despite much clearer wits he couldn't decided why they were still here.

_She should have asked for payment already, unless she took it from Inuyasha -but then, what does he have to offer her? Nothing but his body, and even if she wanted him they were not gone long enough._

Hoshihikari made light conversation, but after a few false starts she gave up trying to involve Inuyasha and Sango, and instead turned her attention completely to Miroku. Perhaps he had drunk more than he thought; his gaze was fixated on her lips when she spoke, and on her fingers as they rose and smoothed her collar, though there was no wrinkle in it.

"Well, Miroku, those two are lost to me it seems, but surely you will keep me company?"

"Company, dear lady? I am glad you are pleased with my visit, but I think this is the longest you've kept me beside you since my fourteenth summer."

Her eyes grew wide, and she smiled as if she was very pleased that he had mentioned that time.

"But you are my favorite, Miroku, didn't you know? I have always loved your wit, and your hands – and your eyes, so lovely; so unique. Your grandfather had eyes like that, you know."

"I never knew my grandfather, or my father. Mushin spoke of them often -"

"But he did not know them as _I_ knew them...as I know you."

She smiled a knowing smile and refilled his cup. Miroku turned his gaze toward Sango and Inuyasha, but they had passed into unconsciousness together, leaned shoulder to shoulder and tilted haphazardly toward the mats.

"They look good together – ah, but she is to be _your_ bride, isn't she?"

Miroku's thoughts were loosened by drink; he stared for a moment, and then shrugged faintly.

"She was – is – I...I don't know any more. She talks about plans but they don't happen; she's stuck in a painful past most days, and I don't know how to pull her out of it – I wonder sometimes...if she can be pulled out of it. If she even wants to be...ah, I don't know what I'm saying."

He shrugged again and reached for his cup, stared at the ceiling as it was reflected on the surface of his drink.

"It was a long time ago that I proposed to her, anyway. Maybe I've been a fool to be so fixated on her; do you know much of love, Hoshihikari?"

Her fingers strayed from her collar to the rim of her glass and occupied themselves stroking its circumference.

"I know much of love; I have spent long ages in this world – you know that. But I am not sure I know much about _human_ love."

"Is it different? It's just – love, isn't it?"

"Perhaps. How can I know? Only a being who had been both human and youkai could tell that; not a hanyou, but something else entirely..."

Her eyes glittered at him dangerously, but Miroku had already closed his and he did not see the expression. When he opened them again it had passed, and she wore a familiar, mysterious smile.

"Come, Miroku; you look tired, and I have beds enough. Tell me you will stay a while, a few days at least, and keep me company. Your companions can surely use the rest as well, and Inuyasha should be clothed and shod before I send him out into the wild."

Miroku pushed himself to his feet slowly. Since the summer of his fourteenth year, when he had come to her to have his beads replaced with a rosary of greater power – since the summer of his fourteenth year, when she had given him the gift of his life and taken his body's innocence in payment...since that summer he had never accepted her invitations to spend the night; it had not seemed...safe. Now, he could no longer think why that was; her smile was so inviting, her sake sweet, her house warm and well lit and welcoming...

A chime distracted him from his thoughts, a high tone that startled Sango into a bleary, half-drunken wakefulness. It was Hoshihikari, summoning her servants. The pair of young women who slide open the doors had no trouble bringing Inuyasha to his feet, and they shuffled him off down the long, bright hallways, but Sango stared at him and then shifted her gaze to Hoshihikari with an expression of discontent.

"Mmm...M'roku?"

"Yes, Sango?"

"Tired."

"I know, Sango. It's alright; Hoshihikari has invited us to stay with her, isn't that kind of her?"

"Mmm...M'roku. Don' wanna...M'roku."

But she was already already asleep again. Her head fell with an audible _thunk_ onto the table, and Miroku winced. Hoshihikari hid a smile behind the fluttering of her fan as she opened it, and then stood and beckoned for Miroku to follow her.

"Come, I will bring you myself. The girls will be able to handle _that _when they have settled your friend."

And she gestured toward Sango with the tipping of her head, and then turned her back dismissively.

While she walked sedately ahead of him, Hoshihikari spoke to Miroku over her shoulder, something dark and teasing in her tone.

"Shall I put you in the room you liked so much before?"

Miroku smiled and nodded, then realized she could not see him and spoke up.

"I'll admit I don't remember much of your home; but I'm sure I'll be comfortable wherever you find it convenient."

A tingling crossed his skin at her reply.

"Oh? Is that so..."

A/N: 1000 words! I was going to go back to Sesshomaru and Kagome...but...I think I'd get murdered if I abandoned our trio of GASP! All humans now. ::snickers:: So let's see...this chapter...plus...two more? And then I'll still be hated but the time of returning to the other half of the story will be nigh. Bwahahahaha...onward! Oh, yes. And you did just read that Miroku spent a summer getting laid. By the female he does not know is Inuyasha's grandma. ::sighs happily:: Ah evil, how I love you...

Please Review!


	270. Chapter 270

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Mistake_

If Miroku had not disregarded the advice he had intended for Sango, he would have been in a better state of mind to deal with the events that followed from his acceptance of Hoshihikari's offer. It was a misunderstanding that would change his life forever, but he had no premonition of what was to come. He bowed Hoshihikari away from the door of the elaborate chamber to which she had brought him, and slid it shut behind him.

With a groan, bemused at the spinning of the room, Miroku fell onto a padded futon and stripped his socks and robes off. In his thin _kosode_, he climbed beneath the covers and closed his eyes with a sigh.

He had dozed for perhaps an hour when the _shoji _slid open again. Even under the influence of Hoshihikari's demonic brew, he had enough presence of mind, enough wariness to come awake at the sound of a step on the floor and the rustling of a woman's silk robe.

His first thought is of Sango, but when he opens his eyes it is not her he sees. Hoshihikari is crossing the room toward him on perfect bare feet. She has changed since dinner; the robe she wears now is thin, gossamer silk, and as much as he tries Miroku cannot keep his eyes away from her body and its slender, beckoning curves. He can feel her power washing over him, the strangeness of its subtleties – _youki _and not _youki_, a pleasant prickling on his skin. There is lust in the unnatural gleam of her gold eyes -

But those eyes save him, because they are so much like Inuyasha's eyes as they had been before tonight that his brain is shocked back into functioning again.

"Hoshihikari -"

"You are awake, Miroku? I came to see if you were well. That woman insisted on spending the night in the same room as your friend; I hope you don't mind that I brought you here, instead."

Miroku closed his eyes to shut out the vision that was Hoshihikari; he reminded himself that she was ancient and full of mischief, that she loved to tease – and he recognized the room he was in, now, as her own room – _misunderstanding, _indeed. He had spent pleasant days here, and nights...

He pressed his fingers against his temples and tried to think. Something about what she has said does not make sense to him.

"You said – you said Sango wanted to be with Inuyasha...why...why would she want to be with Inuyasha? She's been so angry with him; she gave him...terrible wounds..."

His words trailed off as Hoshihikari tapped her fan against the palm of her other hand, and then shrugged. The movement brought the collar of her glistening robe down her arms to pool at the bend of her elbows; the curved tops of her breasts were exposed down to the faint pink edge of her crinkled aureola.

Miroku licked his lips unconsciously, but she saw it and smiled.

"I couldn't say, I really couldn't say. The minds of human women are such fickle things; perhaps she finds him handsome in his new flesh, or perhaps she feels for his trauma, or regrets those wounds now that he has redeemed himself. She is an odd one, anyway...a _taijiya_, but she came here with this... _Inuyasha_ before you even knew he could be human...or is that your influence, Miroku?"

Miroku is forced to wet his lips with his tongue before he can speak, but it doesn't help much.

"Ah...no, that wasn't me, that was – Kagome. She was Inuyasha's woman, but..."

The heat of her presence is sapping all the moisture from the room, drying his mouth – she takes two steps forward, and now his eyes are fixated on the length of her leg, revealed to the hip through the disarrayed robe wrapped so carelessly around her body.

"Hoshihikari, you should not be here. The nights I spent with you were wonderful nights, but those times are in the past. As grateful as I am to you, I have promised myself to Sango -"

"Are you really going to send me away, Miroku? For your woman, with her promises of a future union."

Her tone scoffs, as if the thought is not even worth having.

"She has the scent of a maiden still, that woman – she will not give herself to you, and yet demands faithfulness? What a foolish woman! All those pleasures I taught you, going to waste..."

Again, she smiled. Starlight flickered on her face – from where? He did not know. He blinked, but the movement of his eyelids seemed slow and uneven. He tried to remember the way Sango had looked, the night she had come to him -

But the only image he could see was the one before him, inhuman but so very beautiful – a sharp and wanton beauty, a polished surface that disguises an indifferent heart.

"Hoshihikari, please go -"

His voices is strained; it is the last effort he is capable of making, for the longer he stares at her, the harder is is for his liquor fogged mind to remember why he shouldn't touch her.

"Oh – very well. Very well, I will – leave you; but at least tell me I am still lovely –I _am_ still lovely, am I not?"

They were words she had said to him once before – here, in this very room, when he had tried to deny her that first time; why had he been dwelling on those memories tonight? But he knows it was _her_, something she intended, something she wanted, because for the first time in many years of sporadic visits she is acting the way she did during that magic summer.

He fought the memories, but like water they flowed to fill in every place.

And then the robe slipped over Hoshihikari's arms and off of her body as she stood_ just so_, and looked at him – and looked him -

The next moments were a blur, the hard, undeniable response of his body in its desire, the dancing of her golden eyes and the pale, moonlit heat of her skin.

In the morning he would remember reaching for her, and the heat of his plunge into her wanting body, and he would remember her words, spoken when he was at the peak of his ecstasy.

"There are some things humans choose even knowing that one day you will regret the choosing. The regret is part of the price you agree to pay. But I promise – _I promise_, this will be the last time you make such a choice. _I have a gift for you, Miroku..."_

But if she said anything else, it was lost in the buzz of his brain in his skull, and the guttural depths of his own ecstatic groan, and the high, lonely sound of sobs coming from outside his door, and the sharp, bright heat of Hoshihikari's laughter -

The sounds came to him when he was already tumbling into the black pit, and with them the sound of a familiar voice, speaking the name he could not remember.

"Sango?"

A/N: 1200 words. Ahem. And...yeah, that just happened. I seeeem to be saying that a lot lately . Anyway this can all be blamed on r0o, ALL ON R0O ::snickers:: Not me, oh no, all I did was write it...but hey, at least I didn't kill Inuyasha with the flu! . yet. ::dies of cackling::

Please Review!


	271. Chapter 271

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_No Accident_

Hanyou or human, Inuyasha's entire life had been spent on the edge of his next heartbeat, waiting for the axe to fall. When Sango was brought to the room where he had been brought to spend the night, he looked up and watched with no small amusement as she was carried, head lolling, to a waiting futon. When she was settled and the servants were gone, he settled again into a wary doze, jumping into wakefulness at every small sound, real or imagined.

Sango's footsteps, made heavy by drowsiness and the alcohol she had drunk, were more than enough to bring Inuyasha full awake, but when she dropped to her knees by his side and began to shake him, her hands tight and cold on his shoulders, Inuyasha opened his eyes and stared at her, confused and tired and unable to make sense out of the scattered messages of his senses.

"In'yasa – In'yasa, you...awake? In'yasa!"

"I'm awake, Sango, what the hell's – what's wrong?"

Her voice was thick and slurred still, but her eyes were wide and dark.

"M'roku's no' here...where's M'roku, In...Inu..."

Something flickered in Sango's face, some worry, some fear that he did not understand, but as he looked around the room, straining the limits of his human sight, he was forced to agree with her. Miroku was nowhere in sight; a bed hadn't even been made up for him, at least not here.

"M'roku...m-my M'roku! He's _gone_..."

Her face folded, crumpled; streams of tears began to flow from the corners of her eyes, and Inuyasha patted her back awkwardly as she bent over him and clutched at his _kosode_.

"Hey, uh...it's...it'll be fine, he knows that – person, right? He's probably just up talking with her still, it's not like he's _died_ – come on, you've just had too much to drink."

Inuyasha didn't think she'd heard a word he'd said.

"Sango? Sango, it's fine, I'm sure Miroku's fine -"

With one swift, sharp motion Sango pulled back from Inuyasha's chest and leaned back onto her thighs - and then she was laughing, laughing but crying still, choking on her sobs, choking on her own fear and its certainty.

"Fine, fine, 'm sure M'roku's _fine -_"

Inuyasha reached out a hand to try and comfort her, but Sango was already staggering to her feet, swaying but intent. She stumbled to the shoji, and Inuyasha scrambled up as fast as he could, trying to call out to her in a whisper and unsure of whether or not she could even hear him.

"Sango – Sango, wait, Sango! Ah – damn it! Beats the hell out of me, doesn't talk to me, and then cries all over me – laughing like a crazy woman, I don't even know what her problem is."

He paused only to pull a pair of white, new _tabi_ onto his feet, wiggling his toes at the unusual feeling and marveling at the difference it made, having something on his feet. Then he darted out the still-open door and turned in time to catch Sango's wobbling, staggering shape turning left at the end of the hall.

"Sango – where are you_ going_ Sango?"

Inuyasha is not drunk so much as completely exhausted, worn by the agony that had tormented his body during the binding of his blood. He remembered some of the hallways that she is walking down, but not all of them, and he did his best to try and keep track of where she was turning so that he would be able to bring her back to their room when she had wandered herself out.

That plan fell to ruins when she started doubling back on herself; twice she passed him in the hallway and he was forced to turn around and follow her the way they had just come, but she showed no signs of slowing, just a greater and greater and anxiety. Third time she walked past him she stopped and turned very slowly, her eyes wide, to peer up at his face.

"In...In'yasa?"

"Yeah, it's me – I am never letting you_ near_ liquor again."

For a long minute, owl-eyed, distracted from her tearful search, Sango stared at Inuyasha's face and then reached up to touch his hair.

"Mm...'s no moon?"

But then she turned away and resumed her aimless trek. When Inuyasha crossed, by pure chance, through the room in which they had had their drinks and conversation, he began to be worried and wonder if Sango knew something he didn't. If Miroku had stayed up to drink and talk – why would he be somewhere else? Where else would he be? Unless – but no...he wouldn't.

_He wouldn't. But -_

Inuyasha thought about Miroku, the nature of this brother-in-arms that he knew so well. Hoshihikari's words came back to him - "_...and of course there's Miroku – I always relish a chance to try again with that one. He does have such lovely eyes._"

He wouldn't. But – but...

He sped his footsteps behind Sango, but even as his body caught up with the running of his mind, it was too late.

"Ah – ahh...Miroku – _Miroku...__yes..._"

Inuyasha stumbled to a stop behind Sango, who had fallen to her knees beside a half open _shoji_. In the shadows of the room he could see a pale, shining curve of lovely flesh – Hoshihikari on her knees, bent backward so that her spine was a perfect arc over the dark futon. Her hair was poured out loose around her head like a puddle of moonbeams; her hands were on her breasts, her fingers pulling on the tight peaks of her nipples, and over her – over her was Miroku, his face tight with pleasure. His thrusts were sharp and hard, Inuyasha could see the force of them shaking Hoshihikari's body – and then a groan came out of Miroku's throat that made Inuyasha flush and turn away. He heard words, that – that _female_ speaking something low to Miroku, but with these ears he could not pick them up.

Only Sango could not look away. Her eyes were fixed on the shape of the man she had thought she loved; on the woman, her beautiful, smooth skinned perfection.

_Compared to that – compared to that, what man would ever want me? _

She saw Miroku fall back against the futon, his eyes closed, his breathing heavy. He wore a dazed, half-delirious smile, and Hoshihikari lifted herself from over him and strode naked and laughing to her thin, translucent robe.

Sango sobbed into her hands.

"M'roku – M'roku, my M'roku – I shou'da...shou'da _known_ -"

Hoshihikari came to the door, and finished the breaking of her heart.

"You stupid, foolish girl. Yes, you should have known, because _your Miroku_ is not yours, he is mine! Mine – he has _always _been mine. He _will_ always be mine. _Always_."

Naked beneath her transparent robe, the odors of sex and Miroku's own particular scent imprinted on her skin, Hoshihikari stared down at Sango impassively, and then sneered.

"Who would choose a woman like you over _me_?

With one last sob, choked back behind her hand, Sango drove herself to her feet and then turned and ran. Inuyasha hesitated for only a moment, glaring at Hoshihikari, and then turned and ran down the long hallway after Sango.

A/N: 1225 words. Doom is very crunchy, and tastes as good as bacon. Sango does not agree with me, but Sango was born to suffer; can't you tell? ::cackles:: This bit is taking longer than I thought, but I like it so it stays. Onward to Inuyasha being...quite an interesting fellow, quite an interesting fellow indeed.

Please Review!


	272. Chapter 272

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Kind_

Inuyasha was conflicted. He caught Sango at the end of the hall, and it was only by getting her to her knees that he was able to keep her from moving; her drunkenness was fast giving way to lucid anger, but she was still crying, crying as if she might never stop.

He couldn't think of anything to say; what was there, what possibly was there...she had to have worried, all this time, that one day she would find Miroku in some position like that.

_But for it to happen here, and now – after __everything else...damn it, Miroku! Why now, you ass!_

Inuyasha could not deny the obvious temptation of that pale, luscious flesh, and he knew that Hoshihikari had wanted Miroku – she had said so while he was still in throes of agony. But he had not taken her seriously, had not believed that she would really want anything to do with Miroku, charming as he could be.

_What a mess. _

He had a decision to make now, and it was getting easier by the moment, as Sango's tears fell onto his hands and her broken, angry words slipped into his ears.

"M'roku – why – _why_, M'roku?"

She was all alone now, and her voice and posture were already imbued with loneliness. For a second time, Sango tried to stand and make her way to the door, but Inuyasha grasped her shoulders and held her still.

"Sango – Sango! Look at me! I know you're hurting, I know you want to leave, but you can't just run off by yourself, alright? Sango!"

"Not staying! 'M not...'m not..."

"Alright, Sango, alright. But I can't let you go alone, not like this. Just – five minutes Sango, please?"

Carefully, he backtracked along the hallways they had covered in their mad search for Miroku. The _shiro _wasn't that large, and now that he was thinking straight it wasn't hard to find his way to the room they had been sleeping in before disaster struck.

"Get dressed; I'll be back in five minutes. _Five minutes_ – I swear."

Sango doesn't argue, just reaches for her clothes and begins to dress. Inuyasha feels sick and there is a pounding in his head, and every step is starting to jar his aching joints; his body is not pleased with him, not pleased with him at all, but despite the fact that the man has been an ass, he knows he can't just leave without letting Miroku know they're going.

_And I can't let Sango go by herself, either -it's a good think she's half drunk still, she'd never let me go with her if she was sober, not me, not any more._

He makes his way to the hallways where there are still lights and noises, and gets on his knees before one of the tall, white _shoji_. Forehead against the floor, bowed down as low as he can get, Inuyasha abased himself before strange youkai and begged – begged, for a piece of paper and an inked brush to write his message to Miroku.

"Please, stranger. Forgive my intrusion; I think a life depends upon this message."

The words are awkward and uncomfortable on his tongue, but he knew this was his duty. Miroku had helped him, in the process of making his own mistakes; he owed that help the courtesy of a goodbye and a warning. But Sango – Sango was a greater duty. She was a friend whose trust he had broken, and she was woman that Kagome loved like a sister.

The brush and paper were quickly forthcoming, and Inuyasha bowed his thanks and then inked his message there on the floor outside the open door, before he passed the brush back to laughing, curious hands.

Sango is already dressed and strapping Hiraikotsu on her back when he returns, and he leaves the note on his futon. He grabs the robe of the fire rat and ties it as he follows Sango to the door.

"Why're you followin' me? M'roku don' wan' me...Kagome lef' me – 's all your faul'!"

Inuyasha tried not to notice the twinge of guilt inside him; he came up to her side and held her as she swayed her way across the rocks of the beach back toward the barrier that protected this place.

"I know. I know, Sango. I'll make it right, I promise – I'll protect you."

She snorts, a very un-Sango sound, and turns to poke a hard finger into his chest.

"You? Don' need you pertef-protec- don' need you! What're you gonna do now, anyway, huh?"

She turned back to her path and rubbed her eyes with her hands.

"What good're you, huh? Human – you're jus' _human_ like th'res' of us!"

For the second time, she starts to laugh, and laugh, but this time the laughter dissolves very quickly to sharp, hard sobs.

"I'm sorry; I'm pretty – pretty useless, huh?"

Inuyasha is shivering and rubbing his arms; it is cold, very cold, so cold that he does not feel the wet pain of his feet in their thin cotton socks being cut by the sharp rocks of the beach.

"Anyway, I can't leave you alone. _I'll protect you_, even if all I can do is die so you have a few more minutes to get away."

He doesn't think she heard him, but she did; her mind is clearing slowly in the cold wind off the ocean and the colder wind of her grief. There is something comforting in hearing Inuyasha's voice close behind her; she felt no danger from him now...no danger at all.

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha."

It was the clearest thing she'd said so far, and he stopped and stared at her for a moment, shook his head.

"Don't worry about it, Sango. Let's just get on our way, and get back to the village. Too bad...too bad Kirara wasn't around when we left, huh?"

"Yes...yes, tha's...too bad. Miss her...bu' she's got babs now..."

"Babs, huh? I'm sure they're nice, whatever...those are."

"You...you're no' s'bad, Inuyasha."

"I'm sure you'll change your mind by morning."

She stopped in her tracks then, and hiccuped, and then fell directly onto her face.

Inuyasha blinked in surprise, and then hurried hurried forward.

"Sango? Sango! ...Oh for...now she's dead to the world, but she'll never forgive me if I bring her back there..."

He shook her shoulder, but there was no response.

"I guess its time to figure out if human muscles are good for _anything_."

Carefully, he unstrapped Hiraikotsu and tied it to his own back. Then he bent, and lifted Sango, and began to make his way along the edge of the shore to the forest edge.

A/N: 1100 words! Inuyasha behaves in a strange and startling fashion! But then...he's human now. The demon sleeps inside him...I wonder what it will take to wake it up again? Who knows! Not me! But I'm sure we'll see...eventually! And now...one more chapter of these guys – Miroku's personal aftermath, and an offer he may not be able to refuse. And then it's back to Sesshomaru, Kagome, and the end of the world...or something like that!

Please Review!


	273. Chapter 273

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Letter_

Miroku's darkness was eventually pierced by light; morning light, the light of a clear, ocean dawn. It drove into his brain like the point of a spear, and he threw his arms up over his eyes and then sat up in slow stages. For a full minute he wondered why he was naked, because he remembered going to bed in his _kosode_ – and then the knowledge hit him more sharply than the spear of pain that was still throbbing in his head.

_Hoshihikari. She came to me – and we – and **I** -_

He remembered her body, her wetness, the soaring height of pleasure – he remembered her words, and they filled him with curiosity and anger.

"_There are some things humans choose even knowing that one day you will regret the choosing. The regret is part of the price you agree to pay. But I promise – I promise, this will be the last time you make such a choice. I have a gift for you, Miroku..."_

"A gift. Some gift -"

And then he was on his feet, snatching at his clothes despite the pounding of his head. One other word echoed in his conscience.

"_Sango."_

"Sango – _Sango – _oh, no, no, no -"

Remorse and regret came soaring up into his body as if they had been waiting for the soles of his feet to touch the ground. Instinctively, he knew that he would not find her in the _shiro_ that seems so silent around him; Hoshihikari is nowhere in sight, though he had not expected her to have lingered, and Miroku was finished dressing in record speed and ran out into the house.

_She was there, she saw – she saw, I know she did - _

He knows this house far better than his _companions_ – he finds nothing in the empty room where they were entertained the night before, and then makes his way quietly through the long hallways to where the guest rooms are. The one on the left side of the hall is empty; the floor is swept and bare and shining. The one on the right – that one sends a pang through him, for it shows all the signs of hurried flight.

Two unmade beds, two missing people; on the threshold of the room, even before he entered, Miroku crouched and tightened his fists in his hair and cried.

He cried because he knew he had been stupid; he cried because he did not regret the night as much as he should. He cried because he had hurt Sango, hurt her deeply; he cried because guilt is a heavy weight to bear.

And, finally, he cried because he knew that Sango would never forgive him for this, would never look past it, would never, ever consider him as her _one of the heart_ again. The proposal she had accepted might as well have never been; she would be no longer be his bride.

And he felt so free – light and free from all obligation, all his commitments to a place and person -

And it was wonderful.

And it was terrible.

And so he cried.

When the tears had dried up, Miroku crouched lower for a moment, pressed his face against his hands and then stood and entered the room. There was nothing left that belonged to either Sango or Inuyasha, but in the center of one futon's disarrayed bedding, there was a piece of paper inscribed with rough, quick characters.

**Sango saw. **

**Damned ass.**

**Inu Yasha**

A/N: 600 words! He may be human, folks, but yep, he's still Inuyasha. So...an opinion would be appreciated before I continue on my mad posting spree; in case you haven't noticed, we're approaching 20 chapters in 4 days, here :P Feel better yet, oh deprived ones? Anyway – I could continue on with Miroku and Hoshihikari, and explain a bit about what she's intending...or I could go back to Sesshomaru and Kagome. I'm ambivalent, cause I've spent a lot longer with S'homaru and Kagome than I have with these guys, but since the story is really ABOUT S'homaru and Kagome, that's only to be expected.

So! I leave it up to you guys; I take my reviews seriously. Majority rules...HH + M, or Back To S+K? If you take too long, it won't matter, because I'll just keep writing and posting, and writing and posting... :P

Please Review!


	274. Chapter 274

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXIV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Acceptance_

With quick, convulsive movements, Miroku began to pack his bag; he intended to go out after Inuyasha and Sango at once, while they were still close enough for him to catch up. He had not brought much with him, and everything of Sango's was gone, so it took only a few minutes – but still, before he had finished, as if she had one eye on him all the while, Hoshihikari was at the door of the guest room, looking in at chaos with an amused expression.

"Miroku, are you leaving so soon? And where are your companions?"

Miroku's aura flared; he turned a red-eyed glare in her direction, and then shook himself and finished putting the last few things away. Hoshihikari was not content, and prodded at him more.

"Did they run off in the night together? Am I reduced to only you for company, Miroku? But you look like you are fleeing too."

"I'm in no mood for this right now. Sango – she saw us together last night and I think she ran. Inuyasha went with her but he's an idiot and I don't think he even has _shoes_ -"

Hoshihikari stared at him for a moment and then curved her lips.

"She saw us, yes – and _I_ saw _her_, when she ran. Foolish thing -"

A dread weight fell on Hoshihikari's shoulders and she drew in a breath of oppressive air, but she was still smiling.

"I said _I'm not in the mood_! I have to -"

"Go find your woman? But surely you know by now that she isn't yours any more, Miroku. You are the last person she wants to see now; if you go after her, you will only cause yourself pain. And her, too."

That last came as an afterthought, almost a murmur.

"I -"

"You know I'm right, Miroku. Come, surely you noticed that all last night her eyes were dark on me, simply because I knew you – before ever I had made a move to touch you."

"_Yes_, and you should not have -"

"If you had not wanted me, what would have happened between us, Miroku?"

"I -"

"If you had not desired me, the pleasure you know that I can give you – would you not have turned away?"

"I _told you_ to leave me!"

"With no strength in your voice; with all the heat of your body leaning toward me."

"That – that was...just go, Hoshihikari! Just go."

She leaned close to him, so that the scent of her skin rose tempting to his nostrils.

"Go? Now as then, _aijin_, I will go when you mean it. Didn't I tell you I would save you from your own foolishness; that I would prevent you from ever making such a foolish choice; that I had a gift for you? You will have more than just regrets if you leave now."

Miroku stood with a sharp jerk of motion and hefted his bag over one shoulder. Her use of that word – _aijin_, lover. She had called him that during the magic summer -

"The only foolishness was taking that _gift_ in the first place."

"Taking it? You have not even heard what it is! Or do you think I spoke only of the pleasures of flesh?"

Hoshihikari stood back and strode to the door.

"Put those things down and stop this nonsense, now. Come with me. It is time you knew the truth, and put that woman in the past where she belongs. She would never have been right for you, _aijin_."

Miroku's knuckles whitened on the strap of his bag.

"She needed you because she has no soul, that woman; nothing of her own to keep her alive. I could see it in her face. You feel better now, don't you? Now that you are free of her -"

"Damn you!"

"Only because everything I've said is true."

"_Damn_ you."

She laughed, and the sound was light and carefree and beautiful, and he hated it. He hated that sound in that moment as much as he hated her, and himself. He could not even imagine what hearing it had done to Sango, especially after what she had seen -

But even as he thought that his fingers relaxed and he let out a long breath. He hated to admit it, but Hoshihikari was right. Nothing good would come of going after Sango right now; she would try to kill him sooner than talk to him.

_I have to trust in Inuyasha. Someday, I'll be able to apologize; maybe by then she'll know that it was best for both of us, because I – I can't be the man she needs me to be, though certainly I have tried._

"Enough of this now, Miroku! Come, now – and leave your...bag. The servants will take care of it."

There was a thought in him of insisting that she allow him to leave, but that would be a poor return for Hoshihikari's help and...hospitality, no matter how personally destructive it had proved...and really, what would be the point? Leaving now would correct nothing; leaving just to make some angry point for Sango's sake when there was no other reason for him not to stay.

_It was all my own fault. I knew Hoshihikari's nature. I should never have brought Sango here; that as much as made it inevitable that she would try to...stake her claim. _

But what had been done could not be undone. He could not even it wish it so; only that Sango had not been witness, that she had not been hurt...

_She didn't deserve that_.

The bag slipped from his fingers to the floor, and Miroku pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes until he saw sparks.

Then he took a deep breath.

"Alright. I'll stay – but I'm not sure I want any _gifts_ from you. You've done quite enough -"

With a flicker of fabric and a swirl of luscious scents she was beside him again, holding his arm, guiding him forward through the door.

"Oh no, _aijin_. I haven't done _anything_ yet."

A/N:1000 words! Teehee such nonsense Grandma, you've done more than enough...just like he says. But then, that wouldn't make for much of a story...so more more more indeed. Since popular opinion rules the vote, it's on to more of HH+M, and a bit of Inuyasha and Sango's journey will probably show itself, too. For those of you who are wondering, Sesshomaru and Kagome are using this time to smut like bunnies. Smut on the balcony, smut on the ground, smut in the air, smut in the kitchen – if you can think it, they can smut it. WOO. Smut. Ahem. Annnyyywaaaay...onward!

Please Review!


	275. Chapter 275

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Infamous_

Hoshihikari brought Miroku to the room in which she had stripped the _youki_ from Inuyasha's blood, though he did not know that. The long shuttered _shoji_ that opened toward the sea was closed, and a fire was burning in the brazier – for his own comfort, Miroku thought, because Hoshihikari wore only the thin, translucent robes that she favored when not in the company of strangers, and she did not appear at all chilled.

"Sit, _aijin_."

Miroku hesitated for only a moment, and then sank onto a cushion. His eyes darted here and there, drinking in details with great curiosity – he saw beads in one corner, their plain, smooth surfaces not yet carved. They were heaped in piles according to size and type; jade and ivory, wood and bone, some infused with youki, some gleaming to his special sight with the light of a holy power. There were markings on the floor, but too much of their surface was obscured with _tatami_ and cushions for him to decipher a meaning.

Shelves on one wall held boxes and vials and jars; the table in front of him was covered in scrolls but the characters on those he could see were barely recognizable, ancient characters, the pure old form of Chinese that only the temple masters learned.

Hoshihikari sat slowly beside him, trailed her fingers along his sleeve and up to his cheek. He felt her soft fingertips and deadly claws on the line of his cheekbone, just below his eye, and the those sharp hands loosening his hair from its binding, stroking his scalp, sending his prickles of sensation down his spine.

"Hoshi..."

"Ah, there you are."

"There I – what?"

"Those companions were no good for you, _aijin_. You have not been with me this whole time; now you are Miroku again. Calling me by my full name all this time, trying not to look at me – I like you better this way."

Almost against his will, Miroku's eyes drifted until they were half closed; he savored the sensation of her fingers, dangerous though they were.

"I'm still angry at you, Hoshihi. You did that last night on purpose. Feeding human guests youkai liquor, separating me from my bride -"

"I know you can't thank me out loud, Miroku, but really – to chastise me..."

"Hoshihikari! That's what I mean. I know you aren't human, but Sango was going to be my wife. You were right, more right than you know, when you said she didn't have anyone but me. I suppose that's...I suppose that's why I stayed with her, why I wanted to be...I wanted to be a man she could always be proud of. I thought I was making myself better, but – how long did it take you, Hoshi, to seduce me? I don't remember."

"Five minutes, I think. It _might_ have been ten, _aijin_, but I think not."

"You see? I am a bad man, Hoshihi."

He let his head thunk down onto the table in front of him, and this time he did not hate the low sound of her laughter.

"Shall I cheer you up, Miroku? Shall I tell you of my gift?"

He could hear her excitement in her voice, and that surprised him enough to turn his head and look up at her with wide open eyes.

"I won't be able to convince you to let me leave until you _have_ told me, so you might as well."

"Stop that, _aijin_. You are talking like _her_ Miroku again."

She glared at him, a terrifying thing to see, but Miroku only turned his face to the table and closed his eyes again.

"You are more like your grandfather than I was expecting, _aijin_. I'm not sure I like that -"

"Sorry, Hoshihi, but as far as I know I speak as I always have. I'll try not to be so – unhappy. What is this _gift_?"

And then she was smiling again.

"First, show me your hand, Miroku."

Automatically, instinctively, he held out his right hand; she had asked him this question before, many times, but he had not visited her since Naraku's death. He watched her fingertips move toward his palm, and then stroke the smooth, unbroken surface.

"No wound, no scar – no sign that there was ever anything there. And it never pains you?"

"Not any more. It was a close thing, at the end – but I was well served by Hoshihi's work."

He bowed his head in her direction; he truly was and always would be grateful to her for that. No one else could have done what she had done; anyone else would have killed someone bearing such a dangerous curse, but she had helped him.

_And father, and grandfather before us._

"Your gift begins with a story, _aijin_, one I would ask you not to interrupt. It will not take long to tell; you know some of it already."

Miroku sat up a bit and nodded. Hoshihikari scooted closer to him and returned her fingers to their place in his hair.

"Not that long ago, as I count time, but long enough for you, I met an infamous man of power. He was stronger than any of his brethren that I had met before; no youkai but the greatest could hope to stand against him, and indeed, he was traveling the countryside sealing and slaying evil beings. Yet he surprised me upon our meeting, for though he knew I was youkai, and though I did not give him the impression of overwhelming power, he made no violent move toward me.

"Instead he was quite charming, as men are when they are struck by beauty, and he sat beneath the wisteria and plum blossoms and offered me wine and an exchange of names. His was Miyatsu, and he was your grandfather. "Beautiful lady," he said, "you have nothing to fear from me if you are not harming humans."

And Miroku laughed, for he might have said the same thing himself.

A/N: 1000 words! No time for a/n'ing! Next chapter is almost done. The History Of Miroku's Family, and How He Do Know Hoshihikari be important! Oh but a small note: _aijin_ means lover, usually in an illicit sense. Hoshihi is Miroku's pet-name for Grandma; translates to something like "starfire". Teehee teenage Miroku. Anyway...onward!

Please Review!


	276. Chapter 276

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXVI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Inherit_

Hoshihikari smiled to herself for a moment, as if she cherished this particular memory of meeting, and Miroku waited for her words to continue.

"I told him that humans were beneath my notice – that they were like the insects he squashed so carelessly beneath his feet. "But that is why I carry this staff, beautiful lady; it warns the world of my coming. Even the small and powerless have a right to life." He was so perfectly serious; it was the strangest thing I had ever heard. Youkai live and die for strength and power, and strength and power alone are all we respect and love. For what purpose would one protect the weak?

"And so I stayed, and listened, and agreed to meet him again, and when time had passed and things had gone the way they go between male and female, he was my lover, and quite devoted, though he had other duties and was often gone for quite some time. I found I did not mind it; a long time for him was a span of weeks or months that I might not notice, unless nothing else appeared to occupy my attention. When I met him, your grandfather was still quite a young man. Many of his greatest deeds were still before him, but they would not have come to pass if he had not known me, for in a dark and dangerous year he encountered Naraku, his old foe, the beast you slew...and you know what came of that last encounter."

Miroku clenched his right hand in silence; the curse was gone but the memory remained.

"He came to me, when that terrible curse was just a bud of darkness that he could calm and enclose with his fist – but he knew that it was strengthening, that it would grow. Perhaps, if I had not been so angry, I could have clipped that bud, deprived it of strength, choked it at the root. But I _was_ angry, because Naraku had enticed him with the shape of a lovely maiden, and I did not think that he should have eyes for any other than me.

"So I carved the runes of binding, and instructed him to wrap the beads over his silk glove, and with time, he came to use that power to his advantage in his unrelenting search for his foe; I did not see him often after that, and in truth, a part of me did not care to. He had not been faithful in his heart, and that is important; I am possessive, you know."

Miroku's lips tightened into a thin, sharp line.

"I know."

Hoshihikari's stroking fingers left Miroku's hair and slipped to his neck, his shoulderss

"But that was not the end of our relationship, _aijin_. Your grandfather came to visit me still, even if it was not as often as it had been, and as time passed I began to notice a strange thing. The holy powers which he had always had in abundance were changing; the glow of his aura had taken on the ragged edge of _youki_, and not the smoothness of human powers. At that time, Miyatsu also told me that the curse in his hand was spreading; that for a time, when he had ceased using it, it had ceased to grow, but now it devoured his palm like the black rot devours the leaves in the damp spring.

"I attributed the strangeness of his aura to the strengthening of the curse, and went about my business, for the beads were secure and I had no fear that the curse might strengthen beyond the ability of my power to contain. More time passed, and I heard of great deeds attributed to your grandfather's name; the binding of Kaguya, the shattering of the realms of powerful youkai...and also that he had taken a wife, a woman who had sworn to bear a son that might continue the vengeance Miyatsu had sworn against the one who had cursed him.

"In due time, the woman was delivered of her child; a son – but a terrible thing had happened. The boy bore a pinprick of terrible purpose in his palm; the boy, your father, had inherited the curse Naraku had pierced Miyatsu with.

"Not long after the child was born, Miyatsu succumbed to the curse as it grew. How surprised I was, when some years later, a boy – very much like you were – strolled through my barrier and bowed before me, and said his father had left instructions for him to come to me when it was necessary. He asked that I take pity on him, and handed me Miyatsu's final message...and so for your father, too, I crafted the necessary binding, and warned him as I had warned his father.

"I was interested in that curse, for I had never seen one so invasive, so persistent, so powerful; one does not normally give one's enemies an ability so dangerous in an attempt to destroy them. Then, one day I noticed the same change coming over your father's aura that I had once noticed in your grandfather – but it was stronger, undoubtedly stronger, for the jagged edges were more pronounced and the color was tinged in red.

"I said nothing; what could I say? I had no suspicions, no fears, only curiosity, and so I collected my observations, and waited, and watched."

A/N: 900 words! Whee...uh...onward again! Yep. Onward.

Please Review!


	277. Chapter 277

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXVII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Dwelling_

Hoshihikari fell silent for a moment, tapped her fingers against the table idly and then looked down at Miroku, who was listening attentively.

"Years passed; your father grew to be a man of good works, just like your grandfather, but he was not possessed of the same overwhelming spiritual power – enough to threaten most youkai, to be sure, but not the great flowing of energies that had belonged to Miyatsu. When your father visited me. I noticed the growth of darkness in his power, sometimes a slow, gradual, almost imperceptible change...but sometimes a sharp difference, which I would see between one year's visit and the next. Slowly, I came to see that the curse Naraku had inflicted on Miyatsu's bloodline was more terrible than I had imagined; far more terrible. It did not only invoke a terrible vortex; the curse dampened spiritual powers, and reduced them.

"I wondered at this; did the curse consume those powers to fuel itself? Did it absorb holy energies into the abyss, as it absorbed all other things? But that was not the case; could not be, because such dark power could not be fueled from purity. It was not until your father had taken his own wife, and come to tell me of the birth of his son – of you, Miroku – that I saw what had been happening all along.

Hoshihikari paused for a moment, as if to be sure Miroku's attention was complete.

"The curse of Naraku did not consume, or absorb; it _subverted_. The holy powers that were vanishing, being reduced day by day, year by year, generation to generation – they were _changing_, becoming _youki_. I believed, when I came to this conclusion, that the ultimate end of that curse would be more terrible than what had gone before; not only the consumption of the body, but of the soul."

Her tone grew quiet, and Miroku stared at her.

"Hoshihi, I don't understand. Why does this concern me now? What does this have to do with a _gift_? Naraku is dead, and his curse is gone; I no longer have to worry about death at his hands."

"That is true, to a point, _aijin_, but only a point. Your power is greater now by far than it was in your youth; you have your grandfather's strength, Miroku, or if you do not now you will one day soon. But the accumulation of _youki_, the change in your aura – it remains. There are currents of darkness within you; I am surprised you have not felt them, have not noticed them, now that the curse itself has been lifted from you.

"Your body is safe, _aijin_, but your soul – that is a different matter. The conflict of powers will tear you apart."

Miroku stared at her, and then down at his hand.

For twenty years and more, Naraku's curse and the promise of his own death had kept him on the road, always moving, never stopping to care, or hope, or dream; only the next tomorrow, only the next enemy, the next bit of information – and always the knot of resentment and anger inside him, always the wish for a life without a cloud hanging over his head – a cloud, a strangling vine, an all enclosing darkness -

And now he came to learn that that darkness dwelt still within him; a last taunt from an old foe long defeated. Hoshihikari's voice interrupted his furious musing.

"Put away your despair. My gift is knowledge, _aijin_ – and a cure, because I have had time enough to think on this, and because I do not wish to lose you from beside me."

Miroku was surprised, but he laughed hoarsely.

"You do not wish to lose me? How sentimental, Hoshihi. But what's the point? Even if you can cure what ails me now – this invisible darkness that you say invades my soul – what is this but a reminder of the truth? I am mortal, nothing but a human man. Time will take me from your side, even if all I wanted were to stay here."

She smiled at him, and he could only stare.

"But that is the wonder of my gift! I cannot purge the darkness from you; it is three generations of power, fed on the fury of that curse and all the work of your father and grandfather – and your own work, too, using that curse to fight evil and consume it. Where did the things go that your _kazaana_ consumed, Miroku? Things do not vanish; neither does power. All that was consumed by the curse became an energy which clings to you like glue.

"I can use that power, _aijin_. It will transform you utterly; you will be a new being, but still yourself. It will be an unbinding, the opening of a door between that power and your soul – it will not cleanse you, nothing I know of or can do is capable of that, not after so much time. It is a part of you, you understand? It was passed to you from your father, and from your grandfather -"

"Hoshihi _what are you telling me_? What is it you are saying?"

Her eyes gleamed. Miroku felt his pulse throbbing in his chest.

"I am telling you that my gift is precious, one that only you might ever receive. I am telling you that I will make you youkai, my immortal companion."

Her eyes were laughing, though her lips were not. Miroku did not think he was understanding her right, did not think that these moments were happening -

"And you wanted to leave me, wanted to bind yourself to a human woman!"

When he remained silent, she touched his shoulder again. His back was stiff, his expression impenetrable, closed.

"Well, _aijin_? What do you think of my gift?"

Abruptly, Miroku stood and clenched his fists.

"You must forgive me, Hoshihi, but I have no desire to be youkai."

A/N: 1000 words! Bwahahahaha told you it would be fast! Anyway, I have to actually write the next chapter, not madly spew it forth from my fingers like this one, so it will be more like an hour til the next, I think :P Thoughts on Hoshihikari and the family of Miroku? Thoughts on...what just happened? What do we think about Miroku the youkai? If, of course, such a thing were actually to happen. _He_ doesn't seem to think so.

Please Review!


	278. Chapter 278

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXVIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Body Of Water_

Miroku repeated himself in a voice like iron.

"No, I have no desire to be youkai. I _do_ have the desire to drown myself in the sea."

Hoshihikari stepped back as if his words were a great personal affront.

"Drown yourself? That is all you can say to my magnificent offer, my offer of a gift for which men have pined away and died, sold kingdoms and conquered them – and you would _drown yourself in the sea_!"

For a long moment Miroku stared at her as if he did not intend to speak, but then the words burst out of him, refused to be contained.

"Why did you never speak of this to me before! Something might have been done -"

"Nothing could have been done! Even I did not know for certain until I could examine your power after the vortex had dissipated. And what good would it have done for me to burden you with more horrors? If you could not destroy Naraku and eliminate _that_ portion of the curse, nothing else mattered. You would have died, as your father and grandfather before you died, and that would have been the end of the matter. _You_ have no son, _aijin_."

Miroku took a deep breath, and then another, and then another, but calmness eluded him. No teaching, no advice, no _koan_ or spiritual promise could tell him what to do or assist in his decision. He had thought himself escaped, and free, free to make his own life without worry. And now -

_And now – I should have known. Naraku, you cunning, treacherous bastard, I will never escape you. Not in death...or whatever kind of life is left to me._

He stared at Hoshihikari with a dark fire burning in his eyes, and then for the first time in his life Miroku turned his senses _inward_. Inward, he sent the tendrils and filaments of power with which he usually perused the outer world. He did not think Hoshihikari would lie to him – he could think of no purpose it would serve – but he wanted, he _needed_, proof.

And there – there, within his own body, his own _being_, Miroku confirmed the truth. _Power_, purple-black and bloody red; it was foreign to him, and yet as familiar as breathing. As he touched it, and recognized it for something _other_, he yet knew that this taint had been with him all his life.

It was the visible essence of the long battle his family had fought against Naraku. He could taste the promise of _youki _in it, and in that same moment he snapped back to awareness of the outer world. Hoshihikari was staring at him with full knowledge of what he had done, and why; her eyes were intense.

"Do you see now, Miroku? There is no escaping it; it is a part of you – it has always been a part of you."

"Yes. I see."

He saw; he could not _stop_ seeing. Now that he was aware of the _infection_ inside him, it felt like an itch beneath his skin, like something trying to _get out_ -

"I wonder if you do. Tell me, _aijin_, how well do you know that hanyou – Inuyasha?"

Surprised at what seemed like an abrupt shift of topic, Miroku felt his wariness increase.

"Well, I suppose...as well as anyone does, except perhaps Kagome -"

"Then you know that the beast he asked me to banish had the power to control him, to take his consciousness and compel him to mindless violence -"

"Yes, I know, what does that have to do with..."

Miroku paused, and then stared at her. He had not thought anything could increase his horror, but this -

"No. No! There is no beast inside me, I am not youkai -"

"No, you are not. And that is the problem, _aijin_, just like it was for the hanyou."

"Then – then bind me! The binding you used for Inuyasha -"

"It will not work. You are not hanyou; there is no beast inside you. Do you not understand, Miroku? I will make it clear: there is a wild power inside of you, sleeping, now, sleeping...but one day, when your power grows strong enough – your other power, your holy power – that wildness will perceive the threat and seek dominance over your soul...and it will win. Even if at first you fight it, in the end – in some unwary moment, when you are asleep, or in battle, or deep in a woman – "

He found himself lost in the shadows of gold and amber, crimson dusk and brass that hovered in her eyes.

"In the end, you will be lost, forever."

She stood, and the sound of her silk robe dominated his consciousness until she spoke again.

"I will leave you to think on what I have said. Do not dismiss my gift lightly, Miroku; life is a precious thing, and _this_ life would last forever."

Long after she had gone he sat still, staring at the surface of the table in front of him. He felt the darkness beneath his skin still, and in his mind he relived the memories of Inuyasha's wildness, the mad moments in which he had murdered and raged like the worst of the world's terrors.

H knew suddenly that there were only two options before him, two paths, and one was death, and one was the soul shattering offer that Hoshihikari had made to him.

_But why would you do it, Hoshihi? Why do you come to me with this gift, this cure, this promise – why me, of all the men in the world? What do you gain from such a conversion, one lowly monk for the price in power and effort that will surely be required to enact such a thing?_

"Why, Hoshihi?"

But he knew she would not answer even if he asked – and on the table before him there was a knife – and death was the easier road.

_I must have done bad deeds in a former life – or maybe my deeds in this life made my future. Whichever it is, I have no doubt that this was decided the moment I was born; that the end of the line of my fathers should come with the end of my life._

The knife had a hilt of cold, smooth wood, and the blade was shining steel, not more than three inches but more than enough.

"A courtesy to you, Hoshihi...I will not stain your lovely home with my life."

A/N: 1100 words! . . Onward? ::cackles::

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	279. Chapter 279

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXIX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Fury_

Miroku did not open the door to the hall where Hoshihikari had gone, but instead pushed himself to his feet and turned to the long shuttered door that he knew would lead outside. The wind pushed him back almost at once but he stepped forward and began his walk down to the shore, clutching the cold handled knife in a cold, tight fist.

The wind blasted at him, and then the spray off the sea; at the edge of the waves he stood with cold water buffeting his ankles and calves and stared out across the frost-foamed waves.

From the moment he was old enough to listen and understand, Miroku had been told that his whole life was bound up in the curse of his hand – the curse he had inherited from his father, and his grandfather, the curse which contained within itself both the power to aid him and the power to destroy him as he sought Naraku's death.

_But death was not enough for you, was it Naraku? And I'll admit, it would not be enough for me, now -_

His face is contorted, his expression ugly; there is a dark side of himself that he knows quite well and to which he has occasionally succumbed, to his later regret.

He thinks of many days in which he was sheltered from death only by his own will to live. Kagome's medicine had saved him many times; in battle all his comrades had aided him – Inuyasha, Sango, Kirara, even Shippou had saved him once from certain death, or tried, when he had lain in the depths of a delirious poison dream...

_But none of it mattered. I might have just died, and saved myself and all of them the trouble, for all the good it's done - _

He is more glad than he was when he woke that he has severed the bond he had with Sango; by the time she stops to think of reconciliation or regret – if she ever does – by that time, he will be long dead.

_If I had had to tell her – to tell her that I was doomed to the destiny we always thought would be Inuyasha's, that it is mine now, that worse than losing my flesh to a void she must lose everything I am to some internal darkness – and she might...she would slay me herself, because that is her duty..._

Miroku felt a secondary wave of horror, because now that his own future had been subjected to the promise of such a madness as Inuyasha has suffered from, he could see in context all the _horrors of being human_ and he knew that Inuyasha would never willingly give up the salvation he thinks he has won.

He stared down at the knife, brought it against the pale, cold flesh of his throat. He knew where the arteries were, the deep couriers of his life's blood; one cut, one incision, a moment of muscular effort and death would come crawling up his empty veins, hungry and greedy, the last closure possible in this world...

In cold water that surged past his hips now, Miroku fell to his knees. He pressed the blade _in_, and every other death he had almost died washed across his consciousness. He thought of Kagome's sacrifices for his sake – _Kagome, my first real friend who is lost to me forever_, and Sango' – _poor Sango, who will not and should never forgive me_, and Inuyasha, who had once sacrificed an easy vengeance to save his life -_w__ho __thinks I__ gave __him __a gift, but it is a gift like the one Hoshihikari wants to give me -_

A hot thin trail of red blood flowed down the side of his neck. The sensation struck at him; it was his life flowing away, his _life_, for which he and his ancestors fought so hard -

"Ahh! _Naraku_!"

In the surge of his anger, Miroku hefted the knife by its hilt and cast it out to the sea. It spun, catching a gleam of light along its edge, and then _plunked_ into the water and sank beneath the waves.

"I will not give up, do you hear me! _Do you hear me you bastard? _I will not give up!"

His hands were balled in tight fists. He felt the surge of the sea around him, the undertow pulling at the sand beneath his knees.

He turned his head and looked back at the house behind him, the _shiro_ so brightly lit, with its beautiful lady waiting inside, offering him all that man had ever dreamed of, offering him damnation...

Slowly, he stood and turned, and then took a step forward toward the shore.

A/N: Wow...800 words. Miroku kept trying to kill himself over and over, but this is what NEEDED TO HAPPEN. He can't die. Sheesh. At least not NOW, foolish Miroku. He feels very bad about being an ass to Sango. Stupid Miroku. Annnyway...More soon!

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	280. Chapter 280

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Dramatic_

The waves crashed against Miroku so that by the time he made it back to dry sand he was soaked and shivering in the wind off the water; the wound he had made at his throat was still bleeding, though not too badly, and without even noticing he had managed to lose one shoe in the sands or the sea.

The rocks cut his feet, but he deemed that only proper; he was treading the path to hell, after all.

_I will choose life, just to choose life. Because if I do not, then every other moment I have lived will have no meaning. I could die – but not like that. Not like this. _

And he thought that there was a certain irony, in avoiding the consequences of Naraku's curse by achieving the one thing Naraku had striven for, in the end.

_Inhuman power, immortal life – and a woman. _

The difference was that Miroku's _woman_ was not holy; she was everything but.

He made his way into the _shiro, _and left a path of a single bloody footprint behind him. Hoshihikari was sitting in the company of females he did not know, and she looked up startled at his bloody, bedraggled appearance.

"Miroku! I did not think you were actually going to try and drown yourself -"

"I didn't. I was going to cut my throat; I got...rather wet in the process."

He pushed his hair back from his face, and smiled his most charming smile; there was muttering about his eyes, about his youth and beauty – his smile grew wider.

"Good evening, ladies."

And then he turned his stare on Hoshihikari, and he saw her frozen fingers, her frozen smile, and then spoke carelessly on his way out the door.

"Good evening, Hoshihi; I'll wait in your room."

There was _much more muttering_ as he made his way out into the hall and down toward Hoshihikari's bedroom.

Much more.

Miroku's smile had regained its vicious edge.

_If I have to make a deal with the devil, at the least I won't make it easy for her. Not until she tells me what she wants from me, not until she tells me what her purpose is._

She had called it a gift, but he knew better. From the moment he had arrived, there had been a shining in her eyes, a promise – she had been _fixated_ on him, all her attention focused on him. There would be a price; he knew it.

_But what will it be, Hoshihi? What will it be?_

He waited on her futon, and examined his foot; there were cuts on his sole, but none of them were deep, just in want of water to wash away sand, and linen to bind them.

She came in less than hour, her features stretched with malice, her face turned toward the _youkai_ within her for the first time he in his memory.

"Hoshihi, you didn't have to leave your guests for me, but now that you are here..."

"I should kill you for what you have done!"

"But I came to accept your _gift_, Hoshihi. I came to tell you I would stay with you, just as you wanted; I will forget about Sango, I will commit myself to some other cycle of life...I will be youkai, just for you."

Within her eyes there grew a covetous light.

"Is that so, _aijin_?"

"Yes."

"Because you did not die?"

"No – because I decided I did not want to die. Surely that is why you told me as much as you did."

An odd sort of smile played around her face.

"Then come with me, Miroku – come with me now. I will not wait to do this thing; not one more day, not one more hour."

"You will wait one more minute, at least. Tell me, Hoshihi, what is the price for your _gift_?"

A smile that was snow and bliss crossed her face.

"Why, Miroku; only something you have asked for many times before."

"Asked for?"

Miroku can't think of a single thing he has ever asked her for, aside from the beads that saved him and the binding of Inuyasha's power.

"I have never -"

"But you have, _aijin_. Many times, in fact, but only once of me...and now that you are becoming...now that you are becoming, I will give you what you want; what I want, too."

"What you want -"

"A child, Miroku. A son. I will bear your children, and we will be happy together here."

She smiled and slipped close to him.

"Aren't you happy, _aijin_? Aren't you pleased?"

He could stare at her, dazed, starstruck, confused.

_A child?_

"Now, come with me, _aijin_. It is time; it is _past _time."

And she stroked his cheek with one finger, and then leaned forward to kiss his parted lips.

A/N: 800 words! This chapter is dedicated to the power of IDDN, without which it would not happened nearly so fast. Also to wine. And Kay. YAY. BWAHAHAHA. So whaaaat do you thiiink guuuys? TELLME. XD

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	281. Chapter 281

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Drink_

Miroku shivered even as she was touching him, and Hoshihikari stroked his cheek, noted the palness of his skin, a blue tinge to his lips.

"You are soaking wet, _aijin_, and freezing. Come – we will get some _tamagozake_ into you, and then you into a hot bath. The purifying salts are a requirement of the ritual, regardless."

"_Purifying_ salts?"

She did not respond to his sarcastic statement; instead, she turned, slid open the door, and began to drift lightly along the hallway. Limping only slightly and glad of the thought of a bath, Miroku followed Hoshihikari as she led him through the short maze of the _shiro_ and toward the _onsen_ set behind the house.

Water had already been drawn and heated for him, and the steaming bath beckoned to his shivering skin; it was hot enough to make him wince at first, and step in carefully, but then he settled back with a sigh. Gold eyes gleamed at him through the steam rising from the water.

"I will return with your drink, Miroku."

Moonlight came through the slats of the window behind Miroku, and though the wind was chill and smelled of snow, the water around him was gorgeously hot. His head fell back against the side of the bath, and he breathed deeply, tried to focus on the odors of sea salt and cassia that had been added to the water.

The soap was was sandalwood scented, and finer than he was accustomed to. He was careful to wash the cuts on his foot a second time, and the wound at his throat the same. He slipped beneath the water to rinse his neck, and when he broke the surface again, there was a cup on the rim of the bath near his elbow, and a ripple before him where Hoshihikari had entered the water.

"You are bleeding, _aijin_."

Miroku lifted the cup of _tamagozake_ to his lips and shuddered as he drank it down; the combination of hot sake, eggs, and honey was not his favorite thing, but it was an effective remedy. He did not look at Hoshihikari; she would be too pleased if he did that. Instead, he pressed his fingers against the wound at his neck, and looked at the faint red stain.

"I've had worse."

"Yes..."

She closed on him, drew her tongue up his throat and then stinging over the wound. It hurt, but in a pleasing way; Miroku let out a strangled groan and settled back against the wall of the bath. Her hands roamed his body, learning the new lines and angles he had gained in the years since she had last had the time to make such an inspection. Seven years...eight years...had it really been so long?

_I was fourteen, fourteen when she taught me all there was to know of love, and maybe that was too young...but I do not regret it._

Nor did he regret this moment, soaking in the steaming water, and Hoshihikari's steaming presence. Her mouth trailed over his shoulder and down to his chest, the curved line of definition around his pectoral muscles and across to his nipples. They were sensitive and she knew that; her fangs grazed the tightening peak of one; her tongue, rough and hot, laved it and then moved across his chest to the other side to repeat the motion.

"Hoshi..."

One of her hands slipped beneath the water and grasped the hard length of his erection, began to stroke soft, swiftly, heating his blood.

"Aren't you going to touch me, _aijin_?"

His hands moved automatically to the weight of her breasts, lifted them, caressed them. His thumbs skimmed the very tips of her nipples and she let out a sharp breath and crooned at him.

"Miroku...Miroku...I've never had a lover as good as you – ah..."

He was smiling his wicked smile, but she had never seen it before and did not know its meaning. Hoshihikari was focused on other things – and not only the pleasure he knew so well to give her.

A/N: 700 words! And...smut. Yeup. Miroku and Inu Grandma smut. And...a transformation. COMING RIGHT UP. This chapter be dedicated to r0o, who dragged me out of novel to write it :P

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	282. Chapter 282

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Jelly_

Miroku's fingers slipping between the slick lips of Hoshihikari's sex to toy with the swollen pearl of nerves that most wanted his touch; his eyes were closed as she guided his erection into her body, so he did not see her reaching for a jar that sat on the ledge of the bath. It was full of pale, green jelly; it glowed at her touch, but barely so, just enough to light the steam with its eerie potential.

Before he was aware of what she was doing, she had begun to spread it across his skin. It tingled, cool and then warm, prodding at his nerves; Hoshihikari bent her mouth to his ear and spoke low words, and only then did he think to worry about what might be in the stuff she had smoothed over him.

"It begins, _aijin_. The change of your flesh will be both pain and pleasure, but also something greater than both."

The tingling remained merely an accent. She lifted his right hand away from her body, and Miroku replaced those fingers with the fingers of his left hand, just as practiced in pleasure. She gasped and rocked against him, met the upward thrusts of his hips and the squeezing of his fingers. He lifted his mouth to her nipples and laughed when she pulled away from him sharply, cradling that jar in her fingers.

"So distracting, Miroku!"

"But – that is your fault – Hoshihi."

"Ah..."

She had not expected him to be so _serious_ about his pleasure; she liked the gleam in his eyes and the sharp corner of his smile, but she had work to do.

_Work, Miroku, so that you will be mine, finally mine...your body and your soul...and your seed; I wonder, what will they be like, our children? How much of your holy power will they inherit?_

"Stand, Miroku – s-stop that and stand up!"

To her great surprise, he did not stop – but he did stand, brought her with him, held her against his body and then pressed her back against the side of the bath. Despite herself, Hoshihikari spread her legs wide and gave him a throaty moan. No youkai had ever been attentive to her needs, her desires, in the way that these humans were...and Miroku was the most attentive of the men in his line. He seemed to draw pleasure from her pleasure, and even though that was a disadvantage when she was trying to concentrate on the ritual of power she intended to invoke she found herself not caring.

The length of his erection pressed deeply into her body, in and up toward a spot that gave each thrust the same pleasure as the movement of his fingers. Her climax built steadily, a sweet flame that grew slowly and then in bounds. The jar was still in one hand, but Hoshihikari flung her arms around Miroku's shoulders and pressed her breasts against his chest and _keened_, a high, pure sound, when the pleasure overwhelmed her and the wave crested and broke.

She breathed deeply, and then dipped her fingers into the glowing jelly a second time and began to smear it across his back, over his right shoulder and then down his arm to his hand. His thrusts stopped as the tingling renewed itself, and he looked directly at her, saw some of the stuff glowing on her breasts where she had pressed against him.

"What are you doing, Hoshihi?"

He bent and pressed his mouth to her throat, an attack of the senses to which he knows she is vulnerable; it is a secret he learned by accident, but he has always used it well.

"Tell me, Hoshihi, what are you doing?"

Her moans are breathy but her hands are still moving; her fingers are on his fingers now, coating every inch of the hand that was cursed. His skin looks strange, glowing in the steam.

"This is an ointment to reveal the sleeping power; to draw...to draw...ah..."

"To draw dark tendrils to the surface, Hoshihi? To begin the transformation and the suffering?"

The muscles inside her body squeezed him tightly; her legs wrapped around his hips, pulled him completely into her, and he found himself unable to move away again. She was far too strong; his left hand stroked the smooth skin of her thigh, and felt tense muscles beneath the skin like steel.

"Hoshihi -"

And then she made a fist, in such a way that her own claws breached the skin of her palm, and placed her bloody hand against Miroku's anointed palm.

"This jelly – it is a suspension of powers, compressed and repressed and liquified. It is my _youki_, and the _other_ of my power that I know you have sensed – and it is poison, burning poison...not as strong as my grandson's, but strong enough. It is a substance of _unbinding_; it is the opposite of all that is usually my work...but I undertake much for you, _aijin_."

At that word, _poison_, Miroku started forward, but all that did was drive him deeper into Hoshihikari and closer to her body. Within her, he felt slick muscles massaging him, encouraging his flagging arousal; over his skin, growing from the palm where Hoshihikari's blood had touched, the green glow has begun to intensify from a tingling prod at his nerves to burning that grows.

"Do you feel it, _aijin_? That burn – it is your mortality beginning to leave you. I will _burn it out of you_ – I wonder, once it is gone, what Beast do you think will be born inside you to replace it?"

He gritted his teeth against the pain and then gasped when Hoshihikari took his nipples in her fingers and rolled them back and forth; she pressed her lips to his mouth and drank his moans, his groans, his cries; the pain moved up his arm, burning, searing, sharp – the pleasure grew, a line of fire that connected his nipples to his erection, pulsing now inside her.

She spoke, but the words faded out of his consciousness; perhaps she was chanting; perhaps she was just laughing at him. He didn't know.

Sensation grew to dominate his world; he bucked his hips against her, demanding more – more of her body, more of that shattering intensity. He clenched his fist against the pain, and squeezed his eyes shut; behind his closed lids he saw shattering starbursts.

The pleasure reached a sustained, orgasmic peak, became a wave that did not crest.

"_Drink_", she said. _Drink_ – and something hot, something burning, was pressed against his lips. He knew better than to refuse it, though no instinct of his body told him that it would be wise to obey her – and then the pain, as rich and shattering as the pleasure sustained around it; pain, echoing through his whole being like the ringing of a bell.

Hoshihikari pressed herself close to him, and watched the power and poison with which she had coated his skin become a conflagration, green and gold fire that darkened to shimmer indigo against his skin. The lines of power that had been trapped within his body were responding, growing, conduits of power that reacted to her poison, her _youki_, to the call within her blood for a bond between them.

"Become mine, _aijin_. Become...something _exquisite_."

A/N: 1225 words! And Miroku...has smut. And is suffering. And is becoming youkai...and...bwaha. So much doom. More soon; you know what to do! (That means

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	283. Chapter 283

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Hunger_

The power began to flower across Miroku's skin, moving with all the urgency of a breathing life. Hoshihikari watched it with eager eyes, curious to see the progression of her _gift_, curious to see if it would work the way she intended. The gel she had spread across his skin was a catalyst, her own _youk__i_ condensed into a tangible liquid. She had learned to do this through her binding work, though for those purposes she required something more solid; this...this was just to awaken the slumbering power beneath Miroku's skin, and entice it with her will to take the form of_youki_.

_It is already so close, so close to becoming a beast within him. In another generation or two it would have happened without my interference, but I am glad Miroku defeated Naraku. He is...special._

The technique she was using, a half-ritual of powers and promises, was a thing that only Miroku might survive – and it was dangerous even so. She watched the flames as they spread from the contact between her blood and her power; she watched his skin burning, reddening – and then growing dark, responding to the flicker of _youki_.

She closed her eyes then and began to guide the power, shaping it with will and intent and desire.

_You will be youkai; you will by my side forever. I will breed with you a pup to rival Sesshomaru and the power he hides, the power he will transmit to his offspring. I will breed with you...a pup infused with holy power; a pup to protect all the secrets of the ages that I have accumulated._

Lines of power rose and flared and grew beneath Miroku's skin, writhing like indigo veins across muscles that burned with tension and conflict. His back arched, and Hoshihikari arched with him. Her own power would not hurt her; she was in no danger from the flames that grew and darkened with every breath she took – and then the foreign power was alight, and the flame drove into Miroku's body, and his mouth opened wide in a silent scream.

For another moment, Hoshihikari was the one guiding the power, feeding it – and then it began to grow, to swell. The poison that had begun the flame had faded; even in the flame of energies the green was almost gone, but it had done its work – the surface of Miroku's skin was bubbling, melting, _changing_ – and the energies were flowing inward, meeting their match beneath the terrible wounds.

At the touch of real _youki_, whatever the energies the _kazaana_ had consumed _were_, that was what they became. Hoshihikari had gained crimson eyes and a true Inu snarl; she forced her own will forward, seeking a match for herself – to manipulate the form of the beast as it gained shape within him. She sought to impose upon it the essence and limits of the Inu, but the _creature_ that began to take shape did so despite her influence, not because of it.

For a moment, trapped in the confluence of energies, the freed well of youki within Miroku's blood, the holy power that already danced within him, the intent of her own power, Hoshihikari saw a great light, a blooming spray of palm and wild jungles, ancient lands steeped in the steam of an endless summer and the mist of an equally endless spring.

She tasted nectar and the vapors of life at its beginning; flowers bloomed before her eyes and the petals fell, and melted in a sweet poison. There was the odor of immortality, the most ancient of incense, and then the wide spreading fan of the peacock's feathers, blue and gold and green and purple, lavender and indigo, shimmering and gorgeous.

When she could, after that eternal moment, she stood back; she had not expected this, had not _wanted_ this – youkai he might be becoming, now, but what was within him was so strong that it had denied her influence, denied the will of the Inu that she commanded. Was it his holy power? Was it his own will – but no, he was_ only human_!

She stared at him as the flames died away from his flesh. The terrible wounds of fire and poison were vanishing as she watched, replaced with curling lines of scars, silver on his pale, pale skin with a faint indigo sheen; darkness on light, the pattern one of gorgeous feathers. And his eyes – those lovely, purple eyes...

They were purple still, but only at the edges. The center was blue, and green, and gold – shifting, many colors, all colors...iridescent and more than _lovely_. It took all her will to pull her attention from them and look at his face.

His face...the angles had sharpened, but he was still Miroku to her eyes; his lips were richer now, his nose finer – and his hair, all of his hair, even his eyebrows and his eyelashes...indigo now, the richest, darkest shade of purple before purple become black. It suited him, she thought, and then she leaned closer as his eyes closed and peered at the markings on his eyelids – peacock feathers, purple, green, gold, blue – all those colors again, a rich pattern that was hidden when his eyes opened but for a gleam of plum above his glance -

And it was amaranthine and angry now, that glance – and for only a moment, a single moment, she did not give the anger any heed.

She did not yet know what it was that she had created – what she had set free.

"Hoshihi...Hoshihi, that was more pain than pleasure."

She smiled at him, and reached out to stroke the feathers marked across the back of his right hand, darker there than elsewhere.

"_Kujaku_, _aijin_? Are you so vain that only the peacock can express your nature? I have never heard of a youkai like you before..."

With a speed that shocked and delighted her, Miroku's right hand flickered out of her sight and then reappeared grasping her stroking fingers.

"I'm sure you're very interested, Hoshihi. _Very interested_. But I will take what you promised me, now; I know..._I know what must be done._"

"What I promised you?"

She smiled, and it would have been a tender expression if not for the hunger in her eyes.

"You will have your child, Miroku -"

He bent her wrist back, sudden and painful, and though she struggled Miroku found his newborn strength was enough to hold her, enough to force her down to her knees, and then back, back – until she was bent in a sharp arc, her arm extended in his grasp, her body exposed –_vulnerable_.

She shuddered, and Miroku bent over her. His nostrils widened, tasting the scents as they flowed from her skin; he could hear her heartbeat, rapid and quickening; he tasted fear and fury and arousal – he smiled, felt the flow of new strength in him, felt the new _Beast_ within him and its nature – _vain, noble, gorgeous... _immortal.

"You said _be yours_, Hoshihi, but I know now that will never work. Be mine – _mine_."

A/N: 1200 words! On the dot! Yes Miroku is a peacock. He is awesome. Don't knock it, now – it's absolutely perfect, in so many ways...I promise. You will all be surprised and delighted with the marvelous things that await you...and because of that, this chapter do be dedicated to Kay.

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	284. Chapter 284

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXIV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Jungle_

A thousand things that had not existed an hour ago pressed close against Miroku's consciousness. Each one, heavy, demanded attention. Smells, colors, auras of conflicting brilliance; within himself he sensed the unfurled green memories of a thousand years in ancient jungles; he did not understand how such a thing could come to be within him, _complete _and perfect in essence, in form...

But it had, and it was both familiar and strange. He knew this power; it had been with him his entire life, running in his blood, hidden in his skin, feeding from the curse that had frozen his life in dark patterns.

_But Kujaku Youkai? _

The peacock was a brilliant and marvelous bird. Its plumage was the wonder of the animal kingdom, and the legends attached to its nature by home of the religion to which Miroku had dedicated himself were many...but he did not understand why such a Beast had arisen from within _his_ soul.

_Perhaps she is right, and I am just vain. But I am strong enough to challenge her, I am strong, **strong**. I can **feel **it._

It was like liquid light flowing beneath his skin; it was _intense_ and he felt many directions of _flow _for that light, powers and abilities as yet untested.

_It is time for me to make my devil's bargain; time to finish the shattering of my soul. _

He bent over Hoshihikari's prone body and did not release her wrist. His erection slid into her without effort; she was wetter than he had ever felt her, not the wetness of the bath but her own body, wanting him...

What was it she had said? _ "Youkai live and die for strength and power, and strength and power alone are all we respect and love..."_

The thought swelled something inside him; the urge he had been feeling completed itself, and he used his hold on her wrist to lift and turn her, so she lay on her stomach. She turned her head to look at him and saw a crimson gaze and knew, _knew_, what he had meant when he had said _"Be mine."_.

For a single instant she thrashed beneath him, seeking to escape the iron hardness of his arousal deep in her body, the iron hardness of his grip, holding her still –

And then a sensation like wings settling over her, the sound and the impression of feathers, infinite feathers, and that scent again, immortal incense and power, intoxicating, tangible - and then his teeth, at the back of her neck, the top of her spine. Blood flowed out of her; his power flowed in.

_Youki_, raw, new _youki_ flooded through her body. Blue-black and indigo sparks shifted across her skin; they smoked where they touched but the burning sensation was lost in her desperate attempt to fend off Miroku's will. It was very much like the battle he had waged against her unconsciously, in the moments that his new _self_ had formed – but this was very much conscious, and though her body was the battleground Hoshihikari had no advantage.

Instead, it was the opposite. Everything he had gained in the first moment was, in _that_ moment, released to assault her at once. There was no subtlety, no finesse, just the sudden, oppressive weight of _too much, too lovely_, which she found herself unable to deny.

In the moment when the last fading spark of her resistance faded, and the pleasure that was the salve and shock of mating began to wash over her, stinging every nerve into an incoherent haze – in that moment, she clenched her fists tight and wondered what she had done – what she had created, what she had _set free_.

He was stronger than her, and still dangerous in that other way – and now in this _new_ way -

But she felt the hot pulse inside her when Miroku had reached his pleasure, and smiled with an entirely different kind of content.

_That seed – demon and holy and new – I will have the pup I wanted, aijin_.

But Miroku, too, smiled as he pulled himself from her body and licked her blood from his teeth. He knew much of what had transpired between Sesshomaru and Kagome – he knew the power of the bond that he had invoked, and his dominance within it. He had proved he was the bearer of the greater power; if she fought him – and she would fight him – he could crush even her soul into submission.

He, too, had exactly what he wanted, even I she did not know that yet.

She would learn; he would make her learn. It was dangerous to play games with him in an arena where he now held all the advantages and all the leverage.

He felt the jungle instincts welling up again, felt an urge that he could not yet understand, but which the peacock in the wild would know for the urge to strut and dance and wave that beautiful, alluring fan of glittering feathers. He looked down at Hoshihikari and felt something else that had been alien to him in his human life, but it was not a _bestial _feeling -

Just the rapid heartbeat of the hunter who has overtaken and caged his prey; the flower of arrogance that is half the conqueror's prize.

A/N: 900 words! So much for novel...Miroku ate my soul. But now we will be moving to Sango and Inuyasha, who are "wander in a painful wilderness". Hmm...and they will not take long, and we will be back with Sesshomaru and Kagome...and the second of Sesshomaru's _surprises_.

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	285. Chapter 285

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Only Human_

For Inuyasha, the night after he left Hoshihikari's house was to become a numb, painful memory. He walked for hours holding Sango; once, she woke in his arms, and he was able to strap Hiraikotsu where it belonged across her shoulders, and get her to climb onto his back.

He felt a grim nostalgia, for he had carried Kagome across trackless miles this way, bounding light as air through the wild forests, past villages and fields and crowded coasts. Sango's weight was different, the shape of her body against his back different; her breath tickled his ear – she was taller than Kagome.

By the time the dawn rolled over on the horizon, Inuyasha was walking with heavy steps, dragging himself forward one foot at a time. He spoke for a while, just to break the silence and keep his mind awake, but Sango was still unconscious at his shoulder.

"You know – you know, I think I picked the wrong night to be human-"

He felt her slipping from his back and hefted her higher with a grunt.

"I hope you wake up soon, Sango. You're no lightweight – I think it's that – that damn – weapon."

But after a while the effort to talk became too much. The sun shouldered the burden of the horizon and seemed to leap upward, scattered the clouds in its wake and bore down on Inuyasha's shoulders. His feet were numb and warm, and he knew that he couldn't be good – but he didn't look down. The sun was growing higher in the sky, but the air was not much warmer, and he shivered despite the heat of Sango's body.

Three hours after dawn, Inuyasha felt Sango stirring at his shoulders, heard her mumble beside his ear.

"In..Inuyasha? What...where..."

He smiled and fell forward onto his face. Sango tumbled from his shoulders and he heard her let out a gasp; Hiraikotsu was no fun to fall on – and then a cry as she turned to him.

"Inuyasha!"

He was _so very happy_ to hear the concern and the anguish in her voice – but he reminded himself of Miroku, and the pain she must be feeling – and then there was darkness that would last for a long while.

The sound of her cry followed him into unconsciousness.

All the events of the night before flooded into Sango's consciousness the moment she hit the ground – their meeting with that _female_, the suppression of Inuyasha's demon blood which had sent him back to them a human – the wine, the wine, that abominable, delicious, too-sweet _youkai _wine – and Miroku. Miroku, Miroku, Miroku -

In one second she had relived that horrible vision a hundred times. Then it occurred to her to wonder how it was that Inuyasha had not answered her question, and one look at him was enough to answer. There was a deep exhaustion printed on his face, slack features that said he had pushed far beyond his limits. His _feet_ – his feet were bloody and swollen and growing blue; the soles were _broken_, and she could see even from where she was that dirt and bits of the forest floor had been pushed into the wounds. Cleaning them would be a horror – and she didn't even have anything to use. She was a strong woman, but to carry Inuyasha any distance was beyond her – and there were miles and miles between them and Edo. More than two days of hard journeying it had taken them to get this far, and it would be impossible to travel at that pace with Inuyasha in this condition -

_It will take a week, if it doesn't take two – and in that amount of time, even assuming he can walk, those feet will be so infected he'll lose his legs. _

She was not used to thinking about Inuyasha like this – like a normal comrade who had been injured – but he had done this to himself for her sake, to get her away from that – that – person and _Miroku - _

A sharp, hard, sob welled up in her throat, and before Sango could stop herself she was bawling like a little girl, bent over Inuyasha's chest.

It was fortuitous that she did.

A/N: 700 words! Sango and Inuyasha...poor things, so doomed. All my fault, too ::pretends regret:: teehee. Anyway...interesting things begin to happen. Whatever shall poor Sango do? Will Inuyasha die of gangrene instead of the flu like I kept threatening? Will Sesshomaru and Kagome participate in a wild smutting glory of smut in nine positions producing waves of ecstatic, dare I say tantric, bliss? Who know? HE WHO READS ON!

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	286. Chapter 286

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXVI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Merchant_

By chance, Inuyasha's long wander through he night and the early morning had brought them close to a much traveled road; not in sight of it but near enough that a merchant passing by with his caravan stopped to listen to reports from his guard's scouts of the sound of a woman's weeping coming from the woods just ahead. Everyone knew that this was a favorite trick of demons, and the vote of the guard was to go on – but the merchant was a kindhearted man and he was sensitive to the tears of a woman.

His name was Kou, and he had a wife and other women at home. He had only to think of his daughter's faces to know what was the right thing to do – and so instead of traveling on, he sent the guards into the wood before him and followed on horseback.

What he found was not a demon, but a woman – a young woman sobbing brokenhearted over the still body of a man. The guards muttered to each other, but Kou dismounted and stepped toward her.

"Young lady – young lady, are you in need of aid?"

It was Sango who looked up at him, and Inuyasha who lay on the ground before her. She saw a fuzz of dark beard on a round, concerned face, that bore the lines of smiles and life. His hair was bound in a shining topknot, and he wore fine silks; her eye darted to his horse, a fine beast with a smooth coat and rich saddle.

For a moment, she felt a terrible fear – and then relaxed, because Inuyasha was human now and no one would ever be able to tell he had ever been anything different. Sango tightened her hands on Inuyasha's sleeves, a movement that Kou saw, and smiled at.

"Sir – sir, I do not know who you are, but you are like the answer to a prayer."

"Oh? Well, good! My name is Kin Kou; my caravan is making its last journey before the snows begins to fall."

Sango stood bowed unsteadily over Inuyasha's body, and wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

"My name is Sango, Kou-sama; I am the last Hunter of the Youkai Taijiya village."

"And your husband? He still breathes; that is a strong sign of life."

Sango stared at him with wide surprised eyes.

"My – husband -"

"What is his name, Sango of the Taijiya?"

"His name is – his name -"

And she knew suddenly that she couldn't _say_ Inuyasha's name. No human boy would ever have been given such a name – it was the demon father, claiming the Inu in his son -

She heard Inuyasha's voice in her head, and smiled.

"_I'll protect you, even if all I can do is die so you have a few more minutes to get away...I'll protect you, I'll..."_

"His name is..._Mamoru_. He – we – he was carrying me, because I was – _ill_. We lost our companions, and we lost our friend, and everything – everything is _wrong_ -"

She felt the sobs coming up in her throat again, and leaned forward across Inuyasha's body to hide her tears from the strangers. She could feel the eyes of the guards on her, some suspicious, some curious, some confused; she wondered if this man was really a merchant, to rate so many guards, and why he would bother to stop for a woman he did not know -

But in the end she knew that it wouldn't matter. Without his help, she or Inuyasha would die here; she would have to trust in the gods, and hope that Kin Kou really was the answer to her prayer.

"Sango of the Taijiya, I offer you aid in the name of Kwanyin and whatever other gods look down kindly on men. Where is the end of your road; where do you call home?"

"E-Edo, Kou-sama. We were traveling home to...Edo."

He stepped closer and held out a hand. Sango was reluctant to move away from Inuyasha's side, but she knew she must; as soon as she had taken Kou's hand and stood, he pulled her gently to one side and began to instruct his guards.

"Bring a stretcher, at once – this man cannot walk. Sango-san, his feet – how far has he come this way? Where are his shoes..."

Sango turned and stared into the forest.

"I...am not sure, Kou-sama. At midnight last night we were at the shore -"

"No wonder his feet are cut, the beaches north of here are bald rock! But Sango-san, your husband has a will of iron. It is not yet noon, and I do not know how long he has been lying there...but...those beaches are fifty _li _from here, if not further. A will of iron – a will of _steel_."

She should have corrected him, said that Inuyasha – _Mamoru_ – was her comrade, her brother, her cousin...anything but husband.

Instead she stared at Inuyasha's face, the lines of pain engrained there – at the beads around his neck, Kagome's rosary and the binding that Hoshihikari had used to contain his father's blood...at his feet, swollen and bleeding more now that he was not standing on them.

"Come, Sango-san. We have a good doctor who travels with us; Yusao is my younger brother and he has never once failed me with his knowledge. He will take care of your husband for you. You don't look well yourself; a hot meal and a hot drink and some time in quiet will be nice, don't you think?"

Two men returned with a stretcher of bamboo poles and cotton cloth, and lifted Inuyasha onto it; Sango stepped after him, and Kou held out an arm to stop her.

"Sango of the Taijiya, I will help you onto my horse and we will go back to the road; is that acceptable?"

But weak and worried as she was, there was still strength in Sango. She flexed her arms and took Hiraikotsu from her back, and held it out to Kou.

"Thank you, but I can mount myself. Please, hold this for a moment."

She saw the surprise on his face when he felt the weight of the weapon, and then further surprise when she mounted swift and smoothly, her limbs lithe if not as light as her usual motion. She held out one hand for her weapon, and lay it across her lap before her; her _yukata_ had pulled up around her legs, but the worn leather of her battle costume was all that was revealed.

A/N: 1100 words! Woo! Sango and Inuyasha be saved...for now. The journey to Edo will be easier now, and Inuyasha will not need to get gangrene. Or the flu. Do keep in mind, the events of this chapter take place during the same day in which Miroku is running around Hoshihikari's house, being told stories, threatened with youkai-ness, and then trying to kill himself. Anyway, next chapter is almost done. Woo 5 am writing!

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	287. Chapter 287

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXVII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Bow_

Kou mounted the horse behind Sango and grasped the reins loosely in one hand. The horse knew where to go, and began to follow the guards back through the trees to the caravan. Kou leaned close to her and spoke quietly, his voice amused.

"Sango of the Taijiya, I thought your name only a signal of the village you hail from – but it is more than that, isn't it? You are _one of them_, aren't you _ – _a woman trained in the deadly arts, a woman who battles the scourge of youkai?"

Her eyes did not stray from Inuyasha's still body on the stretcher going before them through the trees, but she answered him.

"Yes, I am. From my fourth spring I trained in the arts of the Taijiya, in weapons and poisons, the construction of weapons of power and all that is needed to slay youkai who threaten humans. I was the strongest of the Taijiya in my village, stronger even than my father, who led the village; stronger than his men – stronger than my grandfather, Shako, who destroyed the Centipede Mistress and saved the shikon no tama."

Her voice had started out strong, but it grew quiet by the end of her words; there was so little meaning in all those things now.

"You have a proud heritage, Sango-san."

Kou's voice came out soft; perhaps he meant his words to be comforting, but instead they drew tears from Sango – tears that came like venom from a wound.

"I – I _have_ been proud, Kou-sama. I have been proud and foolish in that pride, but I am done with that now."

They returned to the caravan, and Kou dismounted first and went to find his brother. Sango wiped her tears and slipped off the horse and followed him, but she could have followed his voice. Kin Kou was not a quiet man.

"Yasuo! Yasuo, you lazy – ahhaha, there you are! I have a patient for you, Yasuo -"

Sango peered around the edge of a litter that had been set down in the midst of the caravan train. The horses chuffed and stamped impatiently around her, but she only had eyes for the men. Kou was big and brash, a voice like a drum and a body like one, too – and Yasuo, the man he called his brother, was his exact opposite. Thin as a reed, Yasuo looked as if a strong breeze might blow him over. His face was narrow, and his topknot was thin; his hands, as he gesticulated at Kou, were narrow too, his fingers slender and dancing.

_What an odd pair_.

"A patient, Kou? Did one of the guard's get kicked again? If you'd just tell them to stop coming up from behind, I'm sure -"

"No, no, it's not a guard -"

"Some _stray fox_, then?"

"Ah – well..."

Yasuo tapped the bridge of his spectacles to push them higher up on his nose and squinted at Kou as if the glass was doing him no good.

"I figured as much. A woman, I suppose? And I don't guess she'll be able to pay, either.."

"Yasuo! For your information, the _patient_ is a young man, and -"

"So where's his mother?"

"Yasuo -"

"Aunt? Sister?"

"Yasuo!"

Yasuo snapped his fingers.

"Ah – must be his wife."

Kou grumbled, but didn't say anything this time. Sango smiled behind her hand, and then stepped out from behind the litter and bowed toward Yasuo, who noticed her first.

"Kin Yasuo-sensei, I am Sango, of the Youkai Taijiya village. My...Mamoru is the one that needs your help. If payment is a concern, then take this, please – I'm sure it is enough."

She drew a weighty purse from beneath her_ mo-bakama_; she had _liberated_ it from Miroku's bag, when she had stopped with Inuyasha to pack her things. The money had been the one thing that she had been sure he would miss.

Sango bowed low to the ground in Yasuo's direction; the coins spilled out from the purse in her hands around her fingertips, cold gold and shining silver.

"Please, take care of him – please. He's the only one I have left now -"

Heat and tightness clutched at her throat and Sango squeezed her eyes shut, angry at herself now. Enough tears! There was no time for them; they would not help her -

Kou came to Sango and lifted her from the road. Yasuo flushed and looked away as Kou picked up the coins and put them back in Sango's hands.

"You keep your money, Sango-san. My brother's a stingy one, but skilled; he'll have your Mamoru right as rain in no time, you'll see."

Yasuo was eager to make up for his inconsiderate moment.

"Yes – yes, indeed, I'm sure he'll be fine. Where is this young man, Kou?"

Kou gestured at a tent being set up hastily by the roadside, and the stretcher on which Inuyasha still lay, moaning now, discomforted; his face was flushed and sweaty and Sango crossed to his side with quick steps.

A low exhalation of breath passed her lips; she squeezed her eyes closed and then touched his cheek; his skin was hot.

"_Inuyasha_..."

She said his name very low; she did not want Kou or his brother to hear.

"For now, I will protect you. Get well, _please get well_."

A/N: 900 words! Dun dun dun...Doctor! And Inuyasha gets what he deserves for running out with no shoes in the cold carrying Sango like a twit instead of stopping to make a fire. Next chapter: Inuyasha suffers, Sango tells a story, and Kou makes a request by the light of midnight's sleepless stars... Onward! And, as always

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	288. Chapter 288

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXVIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Lamp_

The caravan was forced to stop for the rest of that day, but Kou waved off Sango's apologies and concerns when he came to check on his brother's progress near nightfall.

"Sango-san, you need not worry. We are ahead of schedule – and besides, the gods bless men who obey the laws of hospitality toward strangers."

"From the way your brother spoke earlier it sounds like you are very hospitable to _many _strangers."

Kou laughed, a deep belly sound that brought a smile to Sango's face; the sound was irresistible.

"Perhaps, perhaps – my foxes, he calls them, _Kitsune_ – but I haven't found one of those yet, eh, eh?"

He laughed again, but the sound was interrupted by a scream, and Kou winced.

"Yusao is -"

"Yusao-sensei is doing his job; I am not worried. I am a woman of battle, Kou-sama, and I know what is involved in the cleaning and binding of wounds. If In – if _Mamoru_ was any other man, he would be screaming twice as loud."

Kou looked at her with a serious expression on his face for a moment, and then seemed to make up his mind.

"Sango of the Taijiya, I have hesitated to ask this of you because I have faith in my guards, and because I have no claim on your skills or allegiance. Still, when you speak such words – I have faith in my guards, please understand, but I am not sure they are prepared for what might confront us."

"You have a problem with youkai, Kou-sama?"

"Perhaps, perhaps...when we set out from our last stop, we were told to be careful – that a demon of some power had taken to stalking the road and preying on the men who dared walk there."

"Do you wish me to find and slay this beast?"

Her eyes glared with sudden intensity; the fragile woman and her pain was gone, and in her place was the warrior, the woman whose very soul was steel. Kou looked at her surprised, and a bit disturbed by her willingness, by the change in her.

"No, no – I could not ask that of you, and besides, we do not know where or if it hunts; it was only rumor, as I said, but one the guards speak of around the campfire and one that worried me. No...I meant only to ask if you would lend your weapon and your skills to aid in our defense, should it be necessary."

Sango bowed slightly in his direction.

"Kou-sama, considering how you have helped me – _us_ – it would be my honor to help – and more than that, it is my duty. I am the last of my village, the last of my family...but I am still Sango of the Taijiya, as you say, and I will do what I must."

But Kou looked at her in the light of the lamps and fires, her face cold and lovely and sad in the warm light, and he thought that he should not have said anything; cold and lovely and sad, it was the face of one who seeks death -

But try as he might, he could not fathom why. More screams shattered the stillness of the night around them, and Sango turned as if compelled, back toward the tent where Inuyasha suffered under the healing touch of Yasuo.

_I wish we were back in the village, back where Kaede could help – she always knows what to do, always has the best remedies -_

"Kou-sama, how long will it be before the caravan reaches Edo?"

"Four days; perhaps five. If we have good weather, and the horses are well, and luck is with us; but it is better not to hope too much, or always expect the best."

"Yes...yes, it is better. Kou-sama, your generosity is too much to mislead you, and you seem to be an understanding man -"

"Mean you to tell me now the truth about _Inuyasha_?"

Sango turned her gaze back to him, startled, and saw intelligence flickering in those dark eyes under heavy brows.

"I am a well traveled man, Sango of the Taijiya. I have heard his name before – and now that I think on it, I have heard _your_ name before...or rather, not your name, but your rank. Did you know that you were in stories, Sango-san? They tell them in taverns in the cities, even in the capitol – you are the last of the Taijiya, and there are arguments about whether or not you are a woman."

Sango was startled, but she could not help but smile.

"Well, now you can inform them that I am, Kou-sama. Since you know the story and you know about Inuyasha -"

"But you can tell me the true story, Sango-san, and I am a person who likes to hear a good, true story. I am especially curious about your _Mamoru _ -"

"Call him Inuyasha, Kou-sama. It is his name, I just...I was not sure if you were really friend or foe, and Inuyasha is..."

"Ah, but that is why I am so curious. He is _human_ – and the stories said that the one named Inuyasha was Inu hanyou, a hanyou tamed by a priestess...what else were the stories wrong about, I wonder?"

Sango reached up and rubbed her eyes, and then nodded.

"Very well. I'll tell you...shall we sit by a fire? I'm – tired."

"Of course, of course!"

Sango heard a long, pained groan from the tent where Yasuo was still working on Inuyasha, and then then turned to follow Kou to a seat by the fire. She accepted a crisp-skinned drumstick as it was offered from a gruff and bearded guard, and between bites she began to tell bits of the long story of her association with Inuyasha and their companions.

"You have heard correctly, Kou-sama, for in all the days that I knew him there were few hours in which Inuyasha, the one I introduced to you as Mamoru, was human. We met as enemies, but we became companions, comrades in arms though he was hanyou and I Taijiya – because we both had been betrayed by the same man, the same demon, to our sorrow.

"His name was Naraku, and he sought the shards of the shikon no tama, which was broken...he sought dominion, and power insurmountable – power overwhelming..."

And so she spoke beneath the countless, sleepless midnight stars, and did not notice as her audience grew to include the guards, and the shadows, and Yasuo-sensei, drying his hands because his work was through.

A/N: 1100 words! And so we have caught up Sango and Inuyasha to Miroku – it is time, past time, really, to return to Sesshomaru and Kagome. There will be a bit of a time skip backwards here, though not a huge one – keep in mind, we left Sesshomaru and Kagome on the eve of their mating ceremony, and it was not until a day or two after that when Hoshihikari decided to leave – and we've already seen what happened when she came home. So! Without further ado...onward!

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	289. Chapter 289

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCLXXXIX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Possession_

Four days.

Four days, that was how long it took for the crush of pack and allies, servants and sycophants, to disperse from Sesshomaru's island retreat and leave him once more alone with his mate. He had been forced to restrain himself in the presence of so many others – there was_ work_ to be done, and though he knew there were lords who took even their mates without thought for who or what was being done, he was not one of them.

It was too easy to get lost in Kagome – and getting easier, it seemed, as time passed.

_Too easy - _

As it was now.

He had taken her away to his dim rooms the moment he had been able to raise the obscuring barrier, before Hoshihikari, the last of his _guests_ to depart had even been out of sight. Now he had her spread naked across his furs, her hair loose and wild as a mad calligrapher's garden upon his pillow. His fingers found her nipples already taut and crinkled; the probing length of his erection slipped easily through the wetness of her body.

"You want me, Kagome."

It was a statement, not a question, but she answered him anyway.

"Yes..."

"You want me _very_ much."

"_Yes!_"

"Are you angry I did not take you before the lords of the Great Council? Did you want me to show them, too, that you are mine?"

His voice is hoarse and quiet and thick with days of need.

"S'ho...maru – _please_ -"

He thrust into her wholly, sharply, deeply, and she sucked in a great breath and reached up to wrap her arms around him. He caught her hands and pinned them over her head with the weight of his body, reached between them and spread the wet folds of her sex so his fingers could squeeze and rub the swollen pearl he knew would be aching for his touch.

"Scream for me, Kagome."

And she did, and the sound was high and sweet and so, _so_ perfect -

But that was only the beginning.

Nine long hours of the night he kept her awake and panting; she bent for him so easily, _wanted_ him so easily – and though she might have slept at any point, trembling with exhaustion and desire as she was, for the first time he pushed her with pleasure until_ he_ was sated, teasing her body until over and over she begged him for more, and then to stop...and then again for more.

When the dawn grew bright outside, he pulled away from her for the last time, and sipped at the sound of the groan she let slip with a smile full of fangs and a smug sense of satiated contentment. He allowed Kagome to lay on his chest, and pushed the hair back from her damp forehead while idle fingers stroked her hip.

For the first time since the night the ritual had been completed between them, he felt at peace. The strain of so many people was not something he adjusted to well; after many years of solitude, the sudden intrusion of dozens of near strangers never sat well with him, regardless how many festivals he was forced to host.

He sensed that it would only get worse now that he had Kagome beside him – and Hoshihikari had expressed an interest in her...

_And in my power. But that is not for her! _

Despite himself he heard her words in his thoughts at strange moments, like this one – he had for the last several days, since she spoke them in the first place.

The One – how _portentous. _How dramatic; too dramatic, for his taste.

_The conquest I desire is one that belongs to me alone. She will not, can not help; she desires only my strength, turned to her own use. _

He was interested in learning what that use might be, but not interested in succumbing to it – not unless it was something that might profit him, which he doubted.

_If it would profit me, why hide it? What do you have in mind, Grandmother?_

Sesshomaru bent and pressed his lips to Kagome's throat, ran his fingers through a dark, trailing streamer of her hair and then rolled smoothly away from her and strode across the room to his clothes. The scent of her body followed him across the room, warm and beckoning, thick with dreams and old desire. She would be disappointed to wake without him, but there were things to be done, questions to be asked, messages and spies to send to the courts of the lords that had come to this mating of the West with a human priestess...

Unwillingly, he dragged himself out of his bedroom and through the long corridors to the hall where the servants and scrolls he needed were waiting.

A/N: 800 words! This was a pain, cause I had to drag Sesshomaru out of the depths of my brain and back into the light, from which he cowered, pointing at Miroku...whom I slapped back into the darkness. It was an awesome and epic battle, but I pointed out that Sesshomaru was going to get smut, so he finally succumbed. My powah – it be awesome. So

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	290. Chapter 290

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXC

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Unsettling Revelations_

Instead of servants waiting for him, Sesshomaru found only Yoko. The expression on her face was uneasy and her fingers twisted around each other in her lap, instead of sitting in their usual elegant curl.

"My lord."

She bowed in his direction, and then sat upright again – waiting, tense, dark edges in her posture and in her face.

"Yoko, why are you here and not with Kagome?"

It was the most important question to him; Yoko was meant to be Kagome's companion, and her teacher, and her guardian...though that last had proved unnecessary, so far.

"My lady is with the young ones – Shippou and Rin."

"And still, my question is the same."

"She wanted time alone with them, my lord. Her kit – he is not yet comfortable with the presence of strange youkai."

Sesshomaru's eyebrows lifted on his forehead.

"An odd kit. Comfortable with a miko but afraid of his own kind -"

"But she is _kind_, my lord. And that is why he loves her; why she is mother to him, now."

"Yes. So she told me. Very well; tell me then why you are _here_ and not elsewhere, if Kagome has freed your time?"

Yoko looked up at him, her gaze direct and clear.

"It has occurred to me, my lord, that there are things about human women that you do not know. Important things – not only because of your mate, but because of the girl-child. One day she will have questions, lord, and I have learned many times over that we cannot rely on mortals to linger and give answers, even to their kin."

_Mortals._

His eyes darkened; his words became clipped and short.

"Explain."

"My lord? What -"

"This _important knowledge_. Speak; then leave me."

"Ah...yes, my lord..."

But she remained silent for a long moment – so long that Sesshomaru grew first impatient, and then irritated.

"Yoko! If you have nothing to say -"

"It is not _what _but _how_, my lord. I...before the end of your first moon with her, I told myself that I would come to you, enlighten you. It is more difficult than I anticipated to find the right words. My lord, the heat cycle of an Inu passes but once in a century, does it not?"

Sesshomaru's expression did not change but he nodded his response.

"Yes, that is so. What of it?"

"That is not the case for humans; if it were, their species would long ago have died away from the face of the earth. Humans do not live so long. Their females come into season more often."

"And you think that I should be warned of this, because of Kagome?"

"Yes, my lord."

"So humans come into heat like the beasts of the wood – what season must I be wary of?"

"My lord...humans do _not_ have such a season. The cycle of a human woman is neither annual, nor seasonal. It is _monthly_."

His eyes grew wide and wary; he stared at her.

"_Monthly_?"

"Yes, my lord. As the moon waxes and wanes, so does the cycle of a woman – though it is not always as exact as that. Still, once in the passage of each month a woman bleeds and begins anew her fertile cycle. Your lady is no exception, my lord, but it has come to my attention that she has no bled since I began my time with her-"

"She has not bled since I first was drawn to her."

Yoko sat back on her heels and ducked her head to avoid his gaze, but her words slipped out and hung in the air between them.

"Then, my lord, either she is pregnant – or she is barren."

"No. No, no, she is not barren, not she, the one Orochi's daughter called the_ mother of a thousand generations_."

It was all explained now, the siren's song, the call of her flesh – its tug in phases, persistent and changeable as the moon...settled, now, into a higher place of desire, protective urges...but...

_But I had not yet found a way to keep her with me. I had not yet found a way - _

_If there would ever be a way -_

_To make her children something other than hanyou._

"It is too soon, too soon for this – the Great Council has just taken itself from my doorstep, and now _this_? What do I do with her? What can I possibly...every danger is doubled, trebled. She..."

Yoko was very still, keeping a strong leash on the beat of her heartbeat as it sought to grow rapid and hard in her chest.

"I must be sure of this, Yoko. Go to Kagome, now, and bring her to me. When you have done this leave us alone, and then find Shizuka and send him here. At once – _now_. _**Go**_!"

A/N: 800 words! ::cackles:: Ahahahaha...I can't even...I don't want...ITS SO MUCH FUN. Onward.

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	291. Chapter 291

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Abyssopelagic_

Snow had fallen for the first time that morning, cold and clear and shining; Kagome had smiled to see it, and then felt an urge to go find Shippou and Rin. The first snow of the year was special, and though she didn't think there would be any hot cocoa, they could at least have tea and treats.

The two of them were already outside; she found them in the enclosed garden that bordered their own rooms. Rin was dressed warmly for the snow, in furs and layers of robes, but Shippou wore only a single layer of silk, and was not shivering. Kagome wore furs, too, the furs of a great white bear that Sesshomaru had slain, some youkai king who had not submitted...or who had submitted too late. The pelt had been sewn into a robe and hooded cloak – she was more than warm enough, sitting in the snow, even as it continued to accumulate around her.

Rin pelted Shippou with snowballs before he knew what she was trying to do, but once he realized the Kitsune melted every other one she tried to throw at him. Kagome nudged him when he was close enough.

"That's not fair, you know."

As he opened his mouth to reply, Rin's last answering snowball plowed into his mouth and left him spitting out cold, wet, snow. Kagome laughed.

"Or perhaps it was more than fair, after all. Rin, your aim is...exceptional."

The girl smiled, but said nothing. She had been very silent, not speaking a word to Kagome – Shippou occasionally shouted in challenge, or with laughter, and she heard the girl's squeals too, her laughing voice in answer...but she did not speak to Kagome.

She only watched, and smiled, and sidled close when Kagome made room for the girl at her side near Shippou.

Yoko came, bringing a tray of tea; when she made to stay, Kagome shook her head and sent her off on her own business – because the hours she had spent with Shippou were too few, and even with Yoko he was not content or comfortable.

When Yoko returned, half an hour later, her features drawn with confusion and discontent, Kagome stood at once and intercepted her before either of the children could be disturbed.

"What is the matter, Yoko?"

"Kagome – my Lady, I think I have accidentally done a terrible thing, but I did not know! I swear I did not know..."

"What terrible thing? What are you talking about?"

"My lady...I went to see Sesshomaru-sama. I went to speak to him of something important, something very, very important, but when I spoke he knew _nothing_ of what I said, and when I questioned his answers greatly disturbed us both."

Yoko drew Kagome close against her body, close as if they were lovers, hidden in the shadow of the veranda's pillars.

"My lady, he told me you have not bled since you became his woman; since you became his mate. My lady, how many days has it been? How many moons?"

"What? Yoko, I -"

"I have had humans in my care before, I have had girls who I raised as my own daughters, and from them I learned the ways of a woman's youth and growing. You are old enough, certainly – but perhaps..._do_ you bleed, my Lady, or do you not?"

Kagome stared, because the question had no context and the secrecy of it was confusing and because there was still a great and growing tension slung across each of Yoko's features.

She put the moment on hold and reviewed Yoko's words in her mind – and then the truth came clear, and she blushed brilliant red – and then paled, paled terribly.

"My lady?"

"Yes, I...I bleed, Yoko – but – but I – I _haven't_. Not since -"

And she tried to remember the last time she'd had her period; hadn't it been back in the village, a week or two before she'd gone to – before she'd gone to -

_Oh no. Before I went to Inuyasha. And the next day, the very next day, Sesshomaru came and took me away -_

"My lady..."

Yoko's quiet voice broke into her thoughts.

"My lady...are you...with child?"

Kagome's hands wandered down her body to her belly and pressed the smooth, unrounded silk there as if she could learn the truth that way.

"I don't – I don't know. I might be. It's been more than a month, since I -"

"I thought so. My lady, that is what Sesshomaru-sama thinks too. When I mentioned that the cycle of a human woman was monthly, he -"

And then she stopped, and drew herself up.

"He would like to see you, _now_."

Kagome stared at Yoko; all she could think was of the life she knew was inside her, knew, _knew_ – by instinct, as soon as it was mentioned -

_But how can I know the father? How could he? It might be Inuyasha's child I'm carrying, even if it was just one night he – and the baby. The baby, even if it Sesshomaru's – the baby – the baby -_

She knew all her sons and daughters would be hanyou; he must know it too, and what would he do? What would he say? She heard his voice, cold and clear and sharp as a blade of ice.

"_Half breed __-__"_

"_Hanyou trash –"_

"_W__orthless, bloodspoilt brat -"_

But in the next moment Kagome was stiff-backed and sharp eyed, preparing herself internally for the battle she thought would come.

_I defended Inuyasha from Sesshomaru; I'll defend my own children too!_

"Where is my mate, Yoko?"

"Sesshomaru-sama instructed me to bring you to him."

Yoko started back along the veranda, and Kagome paused only to warn Shippou and Rin to remain within the courtyard if they wanted to stay outside.

The hall where Sesshomaru was waiting for her was not far; Yoko led Kagome in silence, one foot at a time, her heart pounding in her chest, behind her eyes, in her temple. It was only with the greatest effort that she kept her hands at her side and not touching the flat surface of her belly, but when Yoko slid aside the _shoji_ that led to the right hall, and then bowed and turned to leave, Kagome felt a shudder cross her skin.

"Yoko, where -"

"I am to bring Shizuka to this meeting, my lady. At Sesshomaru-sama's request."

Then she was gone, and Kagome could do nothing but take a deep breath and step forward over the threshold.

"Sesshomaru, you wanted...to see me?"

A/N: 1100 words! Bit of delay, sorry, but novel writing is a pain in the ass. Hmm...next chapter is already begun, so more soon! And you know...

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	292. Chapter 292

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Muse_

Sesshomaru lifted his eyes to Kagome's face, and she slid the _shoji_ closed behind her and then crossed the length of the room. When he remained silent, staring at her, his gaze piercing as a lance of sunlight, she sank to her knees on a cushion in front of his desk and tried again.

"Sesshomaru? Was there something you – wanted?"

She could not keep her voice from shaking, just a bit, and his eyes narrowed the smallest fraction.

"Yoko spoke with you, or there would not have been such a delay. She should not have done that."

"She only -"

"It no longer matters, I suppose. Tell me, Kagome, are you pregnant?"

She could not longer meet his gaze, did not see his eyes narrow further as she looked away.

"I don't know; how could I know? But – Yoko, she...brought up a...good point."

His voice was gravel then, grinding across her.

"Did she. _Did_ she? And you – did it not occur to you to tell me that this was a thing I should worry over?"

Kagome returned her gaze to his face, anger in her now, the fuse of her temper lit.

"Didn't it occur to _me?_ What about you! You knew I was human, you took me from Inuyasha – you brought me here, and locked me away, and then had your way with me, and I – I...accepted it. A little bit at a time. I had to; it was the only way I could stay alive, the only way I could take care of the obligations that are mine and make sure those close to me were safe. And I thought – I thought that you were not so bad as Inuyasha had said, because when I was most alone you _comforted_ me. What did you think would happen, if we – if we did as we have been doing, as _often_ as we have been doing?"

Her face was so red that he was surprised she was still speaking, but she managed to force her last few words out.

"Did you think that I would just magically _not_ get pregnant?"

Despite the rising tone of her voice and her clenched fists, the embarrassment and irritation on her face, Sesshomaru spoke quietly; there was confusion in his voice, and also anger, but it was no longer directed at her.

"I know the cycles of _youkai_ females, I know the signs of an _Inu_ – and it is only once in a hundred years that an Inu female goes into her heat, perhaps less often than that. I did not know until Yoko told me that a human cycle was -"

And then he paused and said the word like a curse, under his breath.

"_Monthly_!"

Kagome glared at him still.

"Then maybe you should have asked, instead of assuming, or found out what you were getting into before you got into it!"

Power rose from him in waves, angry power, slapping at her, a force of youki that had been enough to bring her to her knees with pain the first time he had tried to influence her this way. _This_ time, as it had once before, purple power rose open and glimmering as a flower and battered away his attempt to reach and control her. With it woke something else, a wailing hand of threads of power in wavering, sunstunned gold.

In the next moment all the power and anger fled Sesshomaru's aura; his face grew stern and cold and emotionless as a rock. Battered by the wave of his power, and now still in the face of his stillness, Kagome crouched motionless on her cushion and shielded her belly with her hands.

Instinct had spoken the truth, had answered her honestly. She had _felt_ what Sesshomaru had seen – the rising of foreign power within her in response to her distress – how youkai it was, and how strong...

She felt a bit of relief within herself, because she had been afraid.

_If it were Inuyasha's child I carried – I would never again be safe_.

But she _knew_ it was Sesshomaru's, and even as she looked up at him to speak, smiling now just a little, hoping for happiness, praying that he might not detest the life she carried as he seemed now not to detest her -

She did not know that he had become aware of the truth in the same instant she had. She did not know that one part of him was more than pleased to sense that truth, and that another part of him was enraged beyond all imagining. He had just begun to come to terms with _her_ presence, with the demands she made on him simply by existing, now, by intruding on his solitary existence.

Rin had done the same thing, once, but Rin had been his choice, a willing responsibility, an _experiment _ - and he felt a flutter of unease as he thought that word, for his grandmother had used it and he did not like to feel _like_ her. But -

_It is the truth. Even if I might have chosen Kagome, I did not – and she did not choose me. _

It was the best thing that could happen; it would cement her position, make her unassailable, reinforce the now-prophetic seeming words of Orochi's daughter – but it was the worst thing that could happen. The time for killing her was gone now, and the time for finding a way to keep her beside him, to purify her blood – it was too late for that, even as it was too soon for them to be able to raise these pups.

_Hanyou. They will be hanyou, all my heirs..._

He felt his eyes burn crimson for a single terrible moment, and then all the power, all the urges toward destruction that he might have possessed faded away.

He could hate Inuyasha, his father's son; he could not hate the sons or daughters of his own body.

Other instincts spoke out at him, warning, and he knew that warning for truth.

_There will be trouble because of this. This thing has not occurred to them, those lords who stood and witnessed her great power – they have not yet thought about heirs, and why would they? I am young and strong, and they do not understand **human** any more...than I do._

But his thoughts focused mainly on a single thing.

_Trouble_.

What form it would take, now...that he did not know.

"Kagome...how do you feel about a visit to your friends?"

He spoke musingly, as if he was not making a dramatic change of subject, but Kagome stared at him and then relaxed violently onto her cushion.

"What."

Her voice was flat, toneless, and he had no reassurance to offer, only the truth.

"There will be trouble now, Kagome."

Again, the word echoed in him.

_Trouble._

"I do not know who, or from where, but someone, sometime, will do something terrible...speak the wrong word, make the wrong move, and then there will be only blood until I am dead or they are."

She opened her mouth, but he silenced her before she could speak.

"Do not say you will stay and fight. More lives than yours are dependent on your safety, now."

A/N:1200 words! Woo! Um...yay? :D There was far less doom than I thought there would be because Sesshomaru decided to not be a twit after all. Quite astonishing really but let's not draw too much attention to it or he'll be a doubletwit next time. Hmm...coming next...I...have no idea. Some preparations for Kagome's move, I believe intersecting with the reappearance of grandma and Miroku...and...Inuyasha and Sango shall be arriving in Edo soon, too. Onward!

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	293. Chapter 293

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Yesternight_

While Sesshomaru and Kagome spent an uneasy night, apart from each other, each thinking liquid thoughts, Miroku sat alone in flickering firelight, amidst the glimmering splendor of Hoshihikari's chambers.

In the dark of the previous evening, everything had changed for him – his very flesh, the essence of shape and form that supported his soul on its journey through this world, was something newborn. His soul, too, once bound up with cursed powers, now flowed in a river of such energy that all belonged to him. In a single day he had learned that he did not get tired, did not need sleep; that he did not feel hungry or thirsty and that when he went outside into the cold wind still blowing off the sea and closed his eyes, he did not shiver. Neither the wind nor the spray of the sea could move him.

What he felt was a tingle on his new skin, not discomfort but a sensation like breathing stars. What he knew, now, thinking over these things, feeling the pulse of strange sensations in his blood, was that everything was changed. Hoshihikari called it a gift, and perhaps it was, in some ways...

_I am safe from the fate that will one day claim Inuyasha. Whatever is youkai within me is mine to control now, at least, but..._

There would be no escape, now, from the circles of the world. Not unless he became a seeker after death. He had never sought immortality, just a life – a normal, human life. That was now lost to him forever, and to all of his children...

_The children Hoshihi says she wants, though I do not know why she would choose me to father them._

He thought back to the moments in which he had merged with this new flesh, the terrible pain that had flooded every cell of his body, saturated even his soul until he was sure he would die just from the burning – back before then, to the reasons she had given him, if reasons they were.

"_An ointment to reveal the sleeping power... a suspension of powers, compressed and repressed and liquified..._ _it is poison, burning poison...not as strong as my grandson's, but strong enough...I undertake much for you,_ _aijin_."

"Yes, you do, don't you...but Hoshihi, you did not expect to be bound to me, did you? I could taste the reluctance in your blood, even though you said _always beside me_ when first you offered this _gift _to me..."

Miroku murmurs quietly to himself, listens to the echoes of his words as they come back to him from the smooth, gilded paper of the _shoji_. There are layers of deceit in her every action; he can _taste_ them, like grains of salt sprinkled on his tongue, unique and distinct.

_One, _an ointment to reveal sleeping power.

_Two_, a suspension...of her own soul.

_Three_, poison, burning poison, an inherited, deadly gift.

_Four_, to undertake much...

An ointment, a soul, a deadly inheritance...a great undertaking.

Those bits of information swirled in his head, bashing against each other in the absence of anything to cushion their impact. _Sleeping power_, that was the capsule of torment that had brought him to this pass – and he could not deny that he had made a willing choice, a decision to live and not die despite what that power would do to him. Hoshihikari's soul...Hoshihikari's power had driven deep within him, far past the surface of his being; she had sought something within him, something more than just the beginnings of the change she had wrought on his flesh.

_Last night. Was it only last night that she separated me forever from everything that is human? Last night._

There had been pleasure to go with the pain, even before he had bent over Hoshihikari and made her his in the truest, most unavoidable way; pleasure, before the burning poison had made its presence known with sickly floral odors and greenish glow.

His thoughts stuck there, on that moment of revelation and pain, on the slickness of that _ointment_ as Hoshihikari smoothed it over his skin – he had seen something like it before. He could _see_ it in his memory, but the association was dim.

_Sweet blossoms and death. Where have I met that scent, that glow, before?_

It came to him in a rush, all at once. Not long after he had met Inuyasha and Kagome, and had begun traveling with them, there had been an _incident_ – an encounter.

_Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru, and the viridian glow of those poison claws._

He should have remembered before this, the way Sesshomaru had so recently forced himself into the tight knit circle of lives that Miroku had himself belonged to, but...

_Sesshomaru is Kagome's demon, and Hoshihikari is mine. What has he to do with me? _

A stirring slipped fluid up his spine.

The pieces were all there, waiting.

_Waiting_.

Ready to be slipped into place.

Poison, inherited poison, not as strong as her grandson's but enough – enough...

The smell of it, the glow -

_Not as strong as her grandson's, but enough -_

And her eyes. Her eyes, that amber-gold, raw honey spilled from the comb – the flowing length of her hair.

_More than just an Inu similarity. Something that can only be explained by a tie of blood. _

And he remembered her hesitation, when Inuyasha had asked about his brother – her hesitation...

"Hoshihikari! _Hoshihikari_!"

He shouted her named at the top of his lungs, knowing she could hear him, knowing she could do nothing but come as he called, for he called with more than his voice. She was drawn by the sharp tug of his _youki_, intense and heavy, far more power than was needed to transmit his will but just enough to ensure a painful obedience.

He could feel the _flow_ of that power as it moved between them and returned – and then she was before him, angry eyed with angry words poised on her lips.

They dissipated as Miroku spoke.

"Tell me about your relationship with _Sesshomaru, _Hoshihi."

His eyes narrowed as her mouth closed, and then he smoothed his features to the most placid calm he could manage as he threw out his deduction, his guess.

"Tell me about your _grandson_."

There was no visible reaction; her gaze was not startled from his face and she could not pale – not her, so still and cool her flesh. But Miroku could _feel_ the tumult of her aura with the senses of the first part of his native power.

"_Speak_, Hoshihi."

And against her will, she spoke.

A/N: 1100 words! Woo! This took time because Miroku was being a pain, but I have to make him use his brain or this will never progress onward...like how Kagome keeps avoiding a certain conversation about inbreeding. ::cackles:: Ahem. Anyway, moving forward – Miroku and Hoshihikari move inevitably toward a meeting with Sesshomaru and Kagome, who have enough to deal with right now and are not going to deal well with more...and of course Sango and Inuyasha are now halfway to Edo, we'll be meeting with them again soon too...

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	294. Chapter 294

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCIV

Prompt From GMDDN: 2/19/13

_Enraged_

"Sesshomaru, the lord of the west – he is my grandson. He is the son of my daughter, the son of my son – but he is not amenable to my desires or to my presence, and I do not bind myself to him in my affairs or in my choices. Why – why do you -"

"Because you _lied_ to Inuyasha, and so you lied to me. He would never have accepted your help if he had known -"

Miroku fell silent suddenly, struck by a horrified thought as her words sank in.

_The son of my daughter, the son of my son – Sesshomaru, the grandson of his woman, and his father, the son of this woman, his father..._

"You! You are Inuyasha's grandmother as much as you are Sesshomaru's!"

A sick rage drops into his gut and burns there; what has he _done_? He is no longer certain of any of the decisions he made in this place; he is no longer certain that anything she did to Inuyasha was helpful at all.

"Why did you do it, why would you -"

"Why did you, his friend, bring him to me?"

"No! You are his _family –_ but you are like Sesshomaru, aren't you? You despise -"

"I do not despise the hanyou; he is an interesting blend of strengths but his weakness is obvious – a thing we have discussed."

Miroku recognized her words as an attempt to cast him back into those moments of terror and suspicion, the panic that had sent him seeking inward through his soul for the truth.

_But what I have is not the truth, what I have is just what she gave me. Except she did not expect it to take this shape, this form – that is the only advantage I have. Whatever strengths are mine, she neither knows them nor can she discover them._

He reached for the twin flames within him, the flame of _youki _and the flame of his rage, and _pushed_.

Energy and emotion flowed together, and Hoshihikari bent before him, wailed and twisted at his feet.

A/N: 350 words! Prepare for the inundation of slightly shorter chapters than the previous; GMDDN is tonight and that means all bets are off on the who, the when, the what, and the why...except that there will probably be smut. How? Well, we DO have a Miroku to deal with ::cackles::

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	295. Chapter 295

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCV

Prompt From GMDDN: 2/19/13

_Revenge_

Miroku felt _power_, more than the flow of the _youki_ that flowed from him alongside his will. Hoshihikari _obeyed_ him– she had no _choice_.

It was an intoxicating feeling for a man who had been denied many times; too many times, maybe.

_Even by the woman who said she chose me – and when she finally came to me, it was not desire that moved her._

But Hoshihikari had taken that from him – had taken Sango and his well-planned life, had taken the future of his soul and the hope of nirvana and the friendships and triumphs and works that he had valued and -

_Everything. You took it all, Hoshihi, and whatever it is that you want, that you desire – I will take it from you if it kills me._

It would matter to no one but himself, he thought, but it was a good enough reason anyway. And he stared down at her, and saw the pain, and remembered how Sesshomaru had soothed that pain in Kagome – his mouth on the mark of mating, his whispered consolation...

He leaned forward and lifted Hoshihikari with one hand tight about her throat. She looked up at him, her eyes narrow and dark with flickering crimson highlights; he stared back at her, and as he did he knew that here was a way for him to be master without pain; here was a subtler vengeance; here was instinct, telling him what to do.

"Obey me, Hoshihi."

Color flared in his eyes, shifted and blinked and grew, a wheel of glory.

"Obey me always, won't you? Can't you do that, Hoshihi?"

His voice was low, a murmur, a moment away from silence; _youki_ flowed with the shifting colors, an unavoidable glimmer.

Hoshihikari saw beauty, too much beauty for her eyes to hold, and strength – the strength that had the power to suppress her will – and a growing darkness, even though the words that caressed her senses were full of light.

"I – won't -"

"But you will. Give in – give in, Hoshihi."

A/N: 350 words again...slowly, slowly I die, for my sickness increases. But not completely yet, so onward! ::cackles::

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	296. Chapter 296

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCVI

Prompt From GMDDN: 2/19/13

_Conquer_

Hoshihikari has never known a power such as this one, has never felt an assault touch so deeply within her with so little effort on the part of her attacker – for what Miroku does to her is an attack, this much she knows. She is succumbing to the lure of his words – to the glistening shadow of a thousand feathers colored like the cry of the jungle night.

He is conquering her and she knows it, but the knowledge is not enough to help her fight. Her will is soft and shallow, untested, unfought – never defied by any but the grandson she has been forced to admit.

_That was not part of the plan._

She does not know that Miroku's will has been strengthened to an edge keener than steel – a sharpness that is all focused on her now, focused on breaking into her mind. It has been that way since he was a child, growing year by year into an edge like the folded layers of a katana's blade. The pressure of the Kazaana's power, the choice he made to fight for the future and his own life, defiance of death – his own, and Inuyasha's, and Kagome's and Sango's, and Shippou's – defiance of the end of the world.

The hottest fires had forged his will, and now he slipped its point beneath all her defenses. The bond of a _mate _opened Hoshihikari to his prodding; her own weakness prevented her from closing the door.

Slowly, she bent before him, listening to the music of his loveliness, blinded to all other things.

"Will you now obey me, Hoshihi?"

"I..."

"You are mine, Hoshihi."

"_Yes..._"

Miroku leaned forward and let out a sigh of contentment, and then focused the leash he had bound around Hoshihikari's will. What a power – what control! It sent a buzz through his blood like the finest sake, but he overcame giddiness with a single look at her.

"Now you will tell me the truth, Hoshihi – and it won't even hurt. Isn't that kind of me?"

"No..."

He grinned.

A/N: 350 words! Sorry, I've got an annoying cold and I fell asleep halfway through GMDDN or this would've been done last night :P Anyway, Miroku discovers one of the powers he has gained with his youkai nature: the ability to entrance, the power to sap will with a peacock's iridescent beauty...now the question is, what does he ask? Which are the right questions...and for how long can he maintain this dominance? What is it he will decide to do, once he has the knowledge he seeks? Well, I dunno, yet. But I will in approximately...twenty minutes! And so will you XD

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	297. Chapter 297

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCVII

Prompt From GMDDN: 2/19/13

_Slave_

Miroku sat on a low couch and leaned forward, elbows on knees. His eyes burned still with flaming color, fires of sea blue and leaf green and royal purple ringed in gold. Hoshihikari existed enslaved to the spinning wheel of fire and light that was his gaze, drawn by a compulsion she could not escape. When he questioned, she answered – honestly, truthfully, as if to hide what she wanted was the least of her desires.

And within she trembled with anger, and fear, and wondered if she had done too much, this time – if she had pushed too far,_experimented_ with a power better left alone. She had thought he would be hers, especially in these days so soon after his transformation – she had thought he would be broken by the power, or maddened by it, crazed by difference and desire...

He had not done any of those things, _become_ any of those things.

Instead he was fluent with powers that instinct alone could teach him; powers whose limits she did not know, could not imagine.

But her rage did not help her; the flow of consciousness and thought beneath his will, imposed over hers, did not help her. She could only speak, and answer all his questions, wondering if all her plans would fall apart now.

"Why did you choose me to _change_ this way; why give _me_ this gift?"

"You...or one of your line...alone...could receive it. You were...prepared...by the veins of power...within you. The power of...the Kazaana! And everything...it...consumed."

Miroku nodded, satisfied; so much, at least, agreed with what she had told him before.

"What is it your want with my children, Hoshihikari? Why is it that you would wish to bear my sons?"

"...Power. Your power -"

"You already said that, Hoshihi. You -"

"Holy power; other power...strong. Like your...grandfather."

Her eyes glittered angrily at him; impassive, Miroku stared back at her, wondering what else he should ask – but there was really only one other thing that concerned him, a question to answer a debt he owed.

"Then tell me one more thing, Hoshihikari."

She stared at him, resentful.

"Why did you hide the truth from me – from Inuyasha? Why did you lie?"

"He...does not...know me. I do not...want him to. He hates...his...brother. And I -"

"You are a link to what he hates. I see. And the beads? The binding of his demon power?"

She smiled, but he felt her resistance increase for a single moment.

"Hoshihi!"

"It will last...forever. His blood will...never be free."

In the moment of panic and guilt that followed her statement, the power faded from Miroku's eyes and freed Hoshihikari from his_spell_.

She jerked back from him then and slapped him, dragged her claws across his face and left lines of blood. Miroku winced, and then smiled to feel the wounds sealing behind her _gentle_ touch – but his voice was harsh.

"You do not like the other side of the coin, Hoshihi? You do not like the taste of your own medicine? I know you too well to think I can believe even _those_ answers without long contemplation on what they really mean – but you _will_ tell me what you have done to Inuyasha. Your own grandson!"

"Enough! You wish to know, _aijin_? I will tell you; why not? I did _exactly_ what he wanted, and you too – I bound his demon blood, the dark energies of his youkai inheritance. I bound them so tightly and well they will _never_ trouble him again."

And she laughed, a bubbling sound that spilled from her lips like blood.

A/N: 600 words! Woo! This randomly spewed out mostly in the last fifteen minutes, because my magical mystery minion who certainly knows who she is inspired my seething brain of doom XD. WOO! More in a few days when I'm done moving house!

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	298. Chapter 298

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCVIII

Prompt From DDN 2/2/13

_Beautiful Daughter_

Hoshihikari was trying to hurt Miroku, though he could not know that. The thing she claimed to have done – she had indeed done it – but not in the way he would think, not in the manner she knew he would expect.

_But how can he think it of me – that I would bind the power of my own flesh and blood forever? Inuyasha is only hanyou, but he is the son of my son, and you, Miroku...you, who are only youkai made, not born, cannot understand this..._

_But still, I will give you beautiful daughters -_

_And glorious sons._

* * *

><p>AN: Some chapters, some chapters, a coming they do be...

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	299. Chapter 299

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCXCIX

Prompt From DDN 2/2/13

_Evil Spirit_

A flicker of dark anger strove with all that still remained of a human conscience in Miroku; he knew the manifestations of evil intent and dark spirits, and only the knowledge that _that _was inside him, driving him – only that restrained him from succumbing to black urges.

"Hoshihi – Hoshihi, I am going to make you submit, one way or another."

"Never -"

"I will. I have already done it once before, but that was not enough for you. I will do it again, some other way less _pleasant _for you – so that when I am done, you will never again question the _depth_ of the power you _bestowed _on me."

A/N: 100 words! Uh...teehee. And now onto something a bit further away...

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	300. Chapter 300

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCC

Prompt From DDN 2/2/13

_Three Horses_

While Miroku grew ever more deeply involved in his own damnation and the one who had given it to him, Sango and Inuyasha drew closer daily to Edo, until the long merchant caravan stopped for one final night on the darkened road that led to the village.

"Well, Sango-san; we have made good time, and your husband is much better – and my guards will benefit from the lessons you have taught them, I am sure."

"Kou-sama, for the help you have given me there can be no repayment; it was the least I could do."

She meant every word.

"Then perhaps you will ease my curiosity, and allow me to travel with you into Edo tonight; the village is not more than an hour distant and the moon is bright."

Sango looked back at the caravan, and considered Inuyasha's condition, and then nodded once, deciding.

Kou grinned widely and clapped once; saddled and ready, three horses stepped forward out of the darkness as their groom passed their reins to Kou and stepped back.

A/N: 175 words...and yes, I did just leave Miroku and Hoshi like that, and yes, I did just run off to Sango and Inuyasha, and oh, by the way, did you know that the next prompt is "senseless flirting"? Now you do. :cackles:

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	301. Chapter 301

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCI

Prompt From DDN 2/2/13

_Senseless Flirting_

Inuyasha had improved greatly under the able care of Kou's brother, but he still could not walk on the tender, broken flesh of his battered feet, and when he was lifted into the saddle he could not tuck his feet into the stirrups, but still he looked grateful not to be carried into the village, human or not.

"Hey, Sango – thanks for taking me to these guys."

Kou road a few feet ahead of them, his attention thoughtfully averted as the pair behind him conversed in low voices.

"You mean they didn't tell you? They found us, Inuyasha – I didn't do anything but cry like an idiot."

Inuyasha smirked faintly.

"You? Cry? No, I don't believe it."

"It's true; I thought...you were dead."

For a moment, Inuyasha was utterly surprised, and then confused. Very confused. But...he couldn't talk to Sango like he would talk to Kagome; couldn't brush off her concern or make light of it, couldn't comfort her, either, because...

_Sango. Huh. I – don't understand you at all, woman._

He said so, and smiled a bit when she flushed and looked away; she was easily embarassed, still, despite everything -

"So help me understand, won't ya?"

"Help you? I don't think _anyone_ can do that -"

"You haven't even tried!."

"Make it worth my while, and then _maybe_ I'll help you."

They laughed together, and then quieted almost immediately.

They had reached the outskirts of the village, and it came to them both at the same moment how much had changed in the few days since they had left.

* * *

><p>AN: Phoooo...onward!

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	302. Chapter 302

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Refulgent_

Night in Edo was full of quiet. At the edge of the village stood watchful guards, but Sango's silhouette was known; the triangular shape of Hiraikotsu stood up sharp and familiar over her shoulder. As she passed into the village proper, the men she passed nodded at her and turned their eyes to her companions.

In his new human shape Inuyasha was as unfamiliar to them as any other stranger, and Kou's smiling visage had never been seen before.

Sango and Inuyasha led the way down the long, dusty road, past the silent houses and shadowed kitchen gardens of many sleeping villagers. Kou came quietly behind, his hands loose on the reins, his face turned toward the clouds and the stars they hid.

The house Sango had shared so briefly with Miroku stood alone and quiet at the end of the road, past the village center and Kaede's house, past the last watchtower and set right against the edge of the village fields. At the door, Sango stopped and stared and then forced herself to step past the threshold; behind her, Kou followed slowly, one of Inuyasha's arms flung over his shoulders.

There was distrust and unhappiness on Inuyasha's face, but Kou had not taken _no_ for an answer, and there had been no way for Inuyasha to get off his horse himself while Sango was _distracted._He knew why; it had been Miroku's house, not only hers – the a house that had been intended for the future, for sons and daughters yet unborn; sons and daughters who would never _be_ born.

Limping heavily, sucking deep breaths past lips cracked with screaming, Inuyasha heaved his arm off of Kou's shoulder and followed Sango through the door.

"You alright, Sango?"

She turned swiftly, caught his eyes gleaming gold and almost familiar for a single moment as his face reflected the scattered moonlight.

"I -"

She stopped. Was there any point in a lie now? Inuyasha was the only one who knew _everything_...

_Or close to it. Enough of it. _

"No – no. This house -"

"I know."

She continues to speak as if she had not heard him.

"When we came here – when we were first together in this place...I was tempted to give myself away; to give Miroku what he wanted. But first I wanted to know that he was there; _always_ there. Before I gave away the last unsullied part of myself – and I – and I -"

Silence overwhelmed her, but Inuyasha knew what she was saying.

"And you never believed in the _truth_ behind his words. You never believed anything but what you _saw_, did you?"

She shook her head and then took a deep breath and stepped forward into the house, leaving the door behind, and the streaming moonlight, and the half-familiar reflection the night sky had made of Inuyasha's face.

"No. I didn't. How could I?"

She remembered then that they were not alone, and turned to their guest.

"Kou-sama, I will make a room ready for you to rest in; it is the least I can do, to begin to thank you."

Kou stepped into the house behind Inuyasha, smile unchanged.

"Your courtesy is much appreciated; I am sure your home is far more comfortable than my caravan tents."

He turned to Inuyasha then, as Sango walked to the cold hearth and began to pile wood for a fire.

"You have a fine woman for a wife, Inuyasha-san."

And Inuyasha choked on silence, confused; he could not nod or move.

_A fine woman...for a wife?_

He had never, _ever _considered Sango to be anything but comrade and friend; she had been _attached_, as he was _attached_, and she was a demon slayer.

A rush of thoughts flung themselves through his brain in a single instant, and left him staggering.

_But not she is not attached -_

_And neither am I - _

_And she is Taijiya -_

_But I am no demon any longer -_

Sango looked up from the hearth with the flickering of the new fire on her face; Inuyasha was utterly distracted.

_A fine woman, for a wife._

A/N: 700 words! Woo! This chapter was a pain because Sango is annoying the heck out of me...but now we go back to Miroku and Hoshihi, so I can return to the land of Sesshomaru and Kagome shortly thereafter.

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	303. Chapter 303

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCIII

Prompt From Valentine's Day DDN

_Vinous_

Perhaps Miroku's tension would have been less, had he known the budding image that had been planted in Inuyasha's thoughts – the image of Sango as a wife, as a woman, as more than a friend who was no burden in battle.

But he did not know, nor could he, and so his tension was a great and growing thing for which there was only one remedy, one purpose – to master this new life.

There was one sure way to do that; he knew it, as it grew and gathered intensity in his thoughts.

_Hoshihikari, you must submit. You must submit to me._

He was not certain what he should do, how he should approach her or make her obey – but there was an idea growing in him, building like the saturated scent of a rainy day. What he needed was a way to control her arrogance, her belief in her own superiority. He did not want to _hurt_ her, for as much as she had wounded him with foolishness she had also saved him from a terrible fate -

And then he knew, and he went to her, and stared at her sitting among her females, some of them familiar from the night when all had changed -

And he spoke softly and near to her, and watched her pale skin take on the wine-dark tones of anger.

"I have decided on a new name for you, in accordance with my kind. I will call you _Mendorichibi_, little hen, because I am _Kujaku_ now_._"

A/N: 250 words. DDN. Yeah. Also hen. One more chapter of these two, possibly two, depending on length – and then worlds collide, as Miroku and Kagome meet again...with their respective mates in two. Baha. Ah and the spawning, we mustn't forget the spawning...more soon!

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	304. Chapter 304

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCIV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Lost Item_

In saying that _name_, even in just a whisper, Miroku gains a new kind of complacency in Hoshihikari's obedience. She could not bear to have herself talked about with such a name – it will harsh enough, the words that will come at her when after so long alone, without a mate, denying every suitor, she has chosen one outside her kind.

More so than they know, but she will not educate them...and there is at least that much good to come from Miroku's loss of his control, for the consumption of his human spirit and all its feelings by something _unexpected_.

What is lost will not return; the change that has been made to him cannot be unmade – the new flesh he wears will hold him forever, an eternal bondage without the heavy weight of chains.

There is in Miroku an urge she knows well – the only one of his urges she truly understands. She feels it in the hardness of the erection throbbing against her body – in the tension of his muscles and the heat of his breath, the weight of his scent which could not but affect her, mate that she was. But _that_ is not to be.

His instincts know what to do and what they want; it would be unremarkable, even to the ladies gathered about her, if at this moment he were to turn and take her, refresh the dangerous flow of his aura and its control of her – inflict his desire on her flesh and take all his need from her -

But -

Miroku is changed but not utterly; he still responds to the call of his own name. He has lost his body but not his soul – not completely. He has lost his humanity, but the instincts of his new life are still foreign to his memory and all his experience of this world.

What he was about to do -

What he was about to do, it stuns him, and he recognizes in the moment before it action becomes undeniable that _something must be done_. He must find some way to ground himself – to _save_ himself – before he is overcome. Before he is overmastered, overpowered, before he loses all ability to recognize himself or control this new _distortion_ of his being.

As if he had been burned, he stepped back from Hoshihikari, a jerking motion. He stared at her, the long pale hair, the gold flicker of her gaze, anger suppressed there, and desire, and unfortunate plans...

Her face gave him the answer.

"Mendorichibi, ready for a journey."

_That_ she had not been expecting at all. There are whispers from her ladies, and this time Miroku can hear them all, and smiles.

"_To call our Mistress -"_

"_But He is her mate! We don't -"_

"_That's right, this strange one -"_

"_Mendorichibi! It should not be allowed!"_

But Hoshihikari's attention had been turned from the name he had given her and onto things more important – things more distracting.

"A journey, mate? And where do we travel?"

Miroku's smile did not change, and yet – and yet she found she did not like it any more.

"We shall go visit your grandson; your grandson and his new mate. After all, she was my friend; and now there is this new closeness between us."

And still, he smiled and she did not – but neither did she protest.

She knew it would be useless.

He smiled – but his eyes were steel.

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! Phew! This was hard...and ….STEEEEELLLLAAAAAAA...teehee. It be dedicated to you! Miroku gets his balls in gear, Hoshihikari suffers for it as she should...and...well, Miroku has no idea what he's about to walk into in the land of Kagome and Sesshomaru, but...if he did, well – he's Miroku. You know. XD

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	305. Chapter 305

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCV

Prompt From DDN 3/9/13

_Sunset_

Though Sesshomaru had told Kagome that she must leave the island fortress, the experience was unlike her worried imaginings. She did not leave the next day, or even the day after; instead, Sesshomaru advised her to begin selecting robes and ornaments that pleased her, furnishings she thought she needed or could use.

These were things she had barely begun to think of as hers, and he was offering them all to her with an open hand; she could not help but smile at him – she could not help but be relieved at his answering smile, however hesitant.

The wealth of choices before her were staggering, and took her time, laughing a little when the truth of her circumstances began to sink in. She still thought of herself as Higurashi Kagome, not the Lady of the West – but Lady of the West she was.

It was appropriate; it matched the name she had inherited from her father.

She had heard quiet voices calling her the Sunset Princess, Higurashi-hime, when they though she was not listening.

A/N: 100 words...plus XD Extended DDN drabble, now posted for your viewing pleasure. When worlds collide...let's see what happens, shall we?

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	306. Chapter 306

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCVI

Prompt From DDN 3/9/13

_Are You Blind?_

The layers of acceptance that Kagome felt – still, even after that terrible _conversation_ – took away the edge from her sudden sensation of _loss. _Sesshomaru, his servants, the visiting lords and their entourages; all of them had surprised her with how easy they made this transition. With how quickly she had become _Higurashi-hime_.

She had been forced to change direction, to move away from her immediate reaction. The moment Sesshomaru had first confronted her, the moment she had seen his face when she had realized the truth, had known that he, too, was aware of it.

Of the _pup_ she carried, of the child she would give birth to -

Inside herself she had already begun to numb her new feelings, to prepare for disappointment, for rejection, for the end of this new life that she had _just_ begun to understand, to reach for, to grow into -

_I just wanted to be with him; I just wanted to get to know him…_

And that time would be interrupted now, but not broken. The warmth within her – she could keep it, even if she had to leave his side for a while, even if he needed time to come to terms with the obvious

But she couldn't blame him, not really; she had been just as blind to the _possibility_ that has become the truth.

A/N: 200ish words...another expanded DDN drabble! Onward, to a _meeting of the minds_...and a conflict of interests...

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	307. Chapter 307

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCVII

Prompt From DDN 3/9/13

_Already Useless_

_A child_…_a pup. Sesshomaru's; I know it. I __**know**__ it -_

And Kagome knew she _should_ have expected it; should have _known_, should have _prepared_, should have discussed with him everything about herself, especially that most important potential, but -

It is too late now for all those things; the natural course of life will continue on its inevitable path. If only Sesshomaru can believe, as she does, that this new being will be a precious gift; if only he can feel _something_ besides the anger and disgust that he has focused toward his brother's blood.

_Hanyou. Will that be – too much for him? If only, if only – I will keep wishing it until I have proof of something else. I can't help it; he makes me want to believe in him. And not just for my sake -_

And so his calmness and his continued, protective possessiveness reassures her. That he has not cast her aside; that he has not killed her – that he has not said anything about a _blot on his blood -_

The day of her departure was set for only a week hence – soon, very soon - but all her preparations were already useless, even before they were truly begun. The forested jewel of the Sesshomaru's island fortress in the far north sea suffered a pair of extraordinary guests before she could take her leave -

But perhaps that was best, after all.

A/N: 250..ish? Words XD Yet another expanded drabble, but tiredness is kicking in and editing is hard, so I shall sleep now, finish tomorrow, and

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	308. Chapter 308

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCVIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Inquisitive_

Sesshomaru knew who it was that had arrived, demanding entrance to the fortress though she was entirely_unexpected __and unwanted -_

_Grandmother, what it is you want now? Why have you returned here when you are the last person I wish to see?_

She had spoken to him of breeding and of the place he bore in her world – he felt still the sting of her expectations and was intent on defying them. Yet he could not deny her and leave her waiting among her entourage; he could not deny her access when she was pack, and close kin; that was not the way of things.

When the barrier was dropped he felt a burgeoning difference in Hoshihikari's power and beside it, striving with it, within it, Sesshomaru felt the dual nature of the not-stranger who accompanied her. He tasted a familiar odor, one which he had grown to know across many years. A male scent, altered now and structured in new ways but its basic essence unchanged; a male scent, entwined and thickened about his Grandmother's scent, bound about it in the ineffable way that energy and scent together marks a mate.

The male is _Miroku_, the lecherous Buddhist, but he must be strangely changed...and to be Hoshihikari's _mate?_

The word echoed within Sesshomaru's thoughts, sharp, confused.

_Mate? Mate!_

He wonders if _this_ is Grandmother's vengeance, and snarls at even the thought. Her plot is obvious to him even before he has locked eyes with her – a baby, a pup invested with holy powers, a pup to rival or supplant the sons and daughters she thinks he will have with Kagome.

_But you have changed this man, Grandmother. You have made him something _else_ – what have you done to him? Why is it that he tastes no longer like a man, but like the purest and most powerful strains of radiant youkai?_


	309. Chapter 309

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCIX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Bargain_

Sesshomaru was thunderstruck; there was no other word for it. The lightning blast of his new knowledge singed the sense out of him, left him stumbling as he reached for the truth. He had nothing to grasp, nothing with which to outline this reality.

_The truth._

What could that be?

_My grandmother, the mate of Kagome's friend – Miroku, whose woman was the other, the Taijiya - _

He had no way of knowing that his grandmother had known Miroku long before Sesshomaru had ever encountered the man – long before he had ever encountered Kagome, even that first, terrible time. All he could think of was treachery, and he wondered: _will the __man who is no longer a man__ be willing to make a temporary alliance? _

An exchange of…_information. _An exchange of resources. There was something in Miroku's face that spoke to a new harshness, or an old one revealed; it was the youkai in the man, the _beast unleashed_, Sesshomaru thought, but he had no way of knowing for certain and heaviest on his mind was the thought of how this thing had been done.

How had a mortal been made immortal?

How had a man become youkai – and yet not a mindless animal or a wandering ghost?

It was as if he had been born anew, his spirit recast in new, more precious, permanent flesh.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes not at Miroku, but at his grandmother, and was surprised when she would not meet his gaze.

A/N: 250 words! And tada! Another chapter :D This one is in response to and dedicated to mrslegume, to whom I cannot reply because alas, she be a typed in name and not a username. Nevertheless, I was inspire by her most recent review, so THIS ONE'S FOR YOU! Onward we go, and

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	310. Chapter 310

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Incredulous_

_How can it be true?_

Kagome stared across the short space between them at the friend she had known for years, now, and who was as much a stranger to her in this moment as if she had never met him before. It was not only the new, harsh lines in his face, not only the corrugated color that marked his eyes, his skin, with iridescence – not the color of his head or the peacock feathers that glimmered with the silver sheen of old scar tissue.

_**How can it be true?**_

The thought rushes louder in her head. For a moment even the sound of the conversation going on beside her is blanked out.

No...it was not how Miroku looked that was the trouble. By itself that was surprising but no more meaningful to her than a haircut would have been. It was the _presence_ she could feel _within _him, the contrast and conflict between the power she had always felt within him, a comforting counterpoint to her own miko energy -

_This is a beast! This is an enemy! This is youkai – youkai – youkai -_

But just as she had begun to truly contemplate what that might mean and how it could have happened, her attention was yanked back to the conversation going on beside her by a comment of Hoshihikari's.

"…soft bed, and a hot meal, Sesshomaru. Surely that is not too much to ask from my own grandson, it's only good manners when I have come so far to introduce my new mate."

_How can this…how can this __**youkai**_ _be Miroku? And -_

Kagome fixed her eyes on Hoshihikari, who she would have been pleased to never see again, even if they had _come to terms_.

_Miroku, her mate? How can that be? How can that be, when Miroku has always been - _

Her heart sank.

_Oh no…oh Sango..._


	311. Chapter 311

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Tainted_

Kagome had a thousand questions; Miroku could see them on her face. He knew what the first one would be, or thought he did. "_What did you do to Sango!", _that was what she was going to say...and he found himself without an answer that was acceptable even to _him_. The truth...what was the truth?

The weakness of a man's body?

The weakness of the past?

The weakness of his love?

The weakness of -

_No._

That wouldn't be the truth, would it?

_Whatever else I am, let me not be a liar. Not to her – not Kagome. I made a choice. Maybe I made it when I decided to go visit **her** – my Hoshihi, my Mendorichibi –_ _whenever I did it, it was my decision and I can't turn away from that – I can't **lie to her**_.

Not to Kagome, incorruptible, the shining light of his dark world. Even now; even when whatever words she had for him now might be their last words together.

And _still_, he has no answer.

Not for her.

Not for himself.

He looked up and met her eyes and then away again, feeling for _something_ to give her; anything, anything at all.

A/N: 200 words! Perhaps one more and then it's back to noveling for me! Therefore, onward, and of course

Please Review!


	312. Chapter 312

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Liberate_

Sesshomaru is quick to corner Hoshihikari; Kagome is equally quick to take advantage of this moment to interrogate Miroku. But the first question she has for him is _not_ the one he asked. As the words are leaving her mouth, as her hands are reaching out, touching the lines of color on his face, the shimmer of ink-seeming lines beneath his skin – he thinks that he should have known; he had just been thinking, hadn't he, that she was incorruptible light?

The truth stings.

"Miroku – are you alright, Miroku? What's happened to you! What did she do to you – that female, Hoshihikari-san?"

Slowly, Miroku shook his head. He looked up and met her eyes; he heard the speeding of her pulse and caught the subtle fragrance of her flesh, the odors of power...purity..._Kagome_. He knew suddenly why every youkai they ever met, all of them canine, had desired her – and he knew equally why the strongest of them had won her.

_She was meant for an Alpha. To make the strong stronger. Just by her presence; without even trying she does this. Even to me._

_Even when I was human_.

Miroku reached forward compulsively and hugged her. She was pleased enough to return the gesture; when she stood back from him her hands stayed on his shoulders, and she returned to her question.  
>"You can tell me, Miroku. You can tell me anything -"<br>"I know. I know, Kagome. But in front of you I'm ashamed; you're too good for anyone to measure up to, Kagome..."

But he smiled to take the sting from his words and reached up to grasp the hands on his shoulders.

"Hoshihikari did nothing to me that was not to save me, nor did she do anything I did not agree to; I'm her mate by choice, Kagome – in fact, I had to...press her to agree, but she said she wanted a permanent bond between us."

Kagome's eyes grew wider than they already were, but she couldn't help herself now. Her voice came out not accusing but sad, and yet Miroku found that her words struck all the deeper because of that.

"And Sango, Miroku? Did you...did you leave her behind?"

He hesitated, but he could not bring himself to tell her the details that would surely hurt her almost as much as they had hurt Sango.

"Yes. I – I didn't...I know I _did_ hurt her, but I did not _want_ to. I just – I wasn't a good enough man for her; I wasn't the _right_ man for her. I've known Hoshihi for...a long time. It was just -"

And he stopped.

"It was just right. And wrong – I know that, I know that..."

His eyes turned to Hoshihikari, deep in conversation with Sesshomaru, and then back to Kagome's face. Her expression was strange to him – strained and eager, pleased and full of discontent – and then tears.

"Miroku – I'm so glad – I'm so glad you're all _right _-"

Kagome hugged him this time, weeping openly, and uncaring of who saw. Sango was like her sister, that was true; someday soon, she would have to visit and offer what comfort she could. But Miroku was also like her sibling, like the elder brother she did not have, but had often wished for – if more perverted than she would have liked, most times.

He smiled and patted her back, and felt some of the ache that had permeated him dissipate. He felt...cleansed. Liberated. _Free_.

A/N: 600 words! Been a bit again I know, but I've got several manuscripts on the hob, several publishers I'm prayerfully waiting to hear back from, and a blog on tumblr being updated daily with original fiction – and that's not to mention the score or so of active fanfics in various fandoms scattered around the internet's mighty doom. Bear with me; and always remember: nothing is abandond! Ever! EVEEEEEER!

Please Review!


	313. Chapter 313

Drabble Collection Alpha  
>CCCXIII<br>Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge  
><em>Yellow Lily: False but Congenial<em>

Sesshomaru watched Kagome carefully with all his senses, even as he listened to his grandmother's voice explain things – an explanation he was sure was more lie than truth, an explanation he would have to pick over carefully if he intended to find worthwhile information. He was on the verge of stepping forward when she reached out for Miroku and burst into tears, but the scent of her was neither pain nor panic; instead it was relief, and though he was confused he chose not to interfere.  
>Satisfied that she was well, he turned his eyes back to Hoshihikari and asked the only question that had weight for him at the moment.<br>"Why have you mated this Miroku, grandmother? What did you do to him?"  
>Hoshihikari smiled, but her eyes bore a sly expression that did not soothe him.<br>"Do to him? So judgmental, Sesshomaru -"  
>"Answer me."<br>Flat tone; demanding words. Youki swelled around him, an impressive aura that squashed Hoshihikari's presence and that of her entourage into near-nothingness; still, it was only a tithe of his strength.  
>"Oh very well; I made him youkai, to save his life. He had been infected by dark energies, youki which found a pathway into his body following the curse that once defined his life."<br>A flicker of surprise darted across Sesshomaru's face before he could restrain it, and Hoshihikari smiled knowingly.  
>"You are confused; you don't know how I know this...well, I will tell you. You think I took this one for my mate because of your own woman – because of his connection to her, because they are such good friends. That is foolishness, because I have known Miroku since he was a mere child – barely more than an infant – and before that, I knew his father...and his grandfather, who was a powerful man indeed. I was the one who crafted the binding seal that held back the consequences of that curse – and when the curse was lifted, I was the one who saved him, as I told you."<br>Sesshomaru shook his head slowly, one smooth, contained movement.  
>"No. Something is wrong with your explanation. Something – you are not telling me something – I can taste your lie, grandmother."<br>Her expression remained a study in innocence, but he knew better.  
>"I will find out what you want, rest assured of that. Until then – until then, I expect it is better if I keep you close."<br>And then, because he knew it would disturb her now and that she would find out later anyway, he told her of Kagome's condition."  
>"You can demonstrate your filial desires by assisting the new Lady of the West with the pup she carries. I am sure she will be...grateful for your help. And of course you have brought her friend to her – how thoughtful."<br>Sesshomaru took pleasure in Hoshihikari's sudden, wide-eyed surprise.  
>"Pup?"<br>"Yes. Human's have their cycle once each moon, did you not know that? She is pregnant already; I will have an heir before next spring is over."  
>There was more he could have said, but he was distracted by Kagome's sudden cry.<br>"Human? But why – but how!"  
>Sesshomaru saw a deeper discomfort appear on Hoshihikari's face, and wondered at it, just as much as he wondered at Kagome's words.<p>

A/N: 550 words, and hello again dear fwooms! It's been a while, but I've been writing and editing and writing and editing a novella which is currently on its way for round four of publishing company editorial roulette – meaning that they like it, and now I have to finish the edits and wait to see if they like it more after the revisions they requested. Anyway, while I'm in the self-induced hell of editing and waiting, I'm going to try and churn out some chapters and actually (dare I say it) get this story finished, because plot-wise only a few major events remain...  
>SO! Apologies for the wait, more soon (I hope), and wish me luck, my dears!<br>Please Review!


	314. Chapter 314

Drabble Collection Alpha  
>CCCXIV<br>Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word  
><em>Transmutations<em>

The sounds of Sesshomaru and Hoshihikari's conversation came to Miroku faintly and Kagome not at all. Miroku licked his lips and rubbed his hands through his hair, and then started backwards when Kagome's hands reached out to join his.  
>"So soft! Your hair – it's like the soft parts of feathers, Miroku. And your eyes are so pretty -"<br>Miroku winced just a little. Youkai he might be, but he was still male; he didn't want to be pretty. Then he heard her soft laughter, and knew she had said it on purpose and shook his head at her.  
>"So cruel, Kagome."<br>"Ha! Hardly. But – Miroku – you know, I wasn't only asking how you ended up Hoshihikari-san's mate. How are you...why are you..."  
>And then she shrugged and settled on a more inclusive question.<br>"What are you, Miroku? What did Hoshihikari-san do to you?"  
>She flicked a scowl in the other female's direction, and Miroku forced a bit of laughter.<br>"What did she - Kagome. Kagome, look at me. What you see – the changes in me – they were my own choice, too, though not the happiest one I ever had to make in my life."  
>"But she…did that to you? Made you youkai?"<br>"She and Naraku – no, the truth is that my own charitable work did this to me."  
>He smiled; his lip lifted to show gleaming fangs, a mouth full of sharp teeth that would take any other woman by surprise, that would destroy any other friendship. Kagome hesitated only for a moment and then took it in stride.<br>"I don't think I understand, Miroku. I mean, it's obvious that something happened, but -"  
>He shrugged.<br>"I don't understand it much better myself. Hoshihi said that the youki and jyaki I and my father and my grandfather had sucked into the Kazaana had not gone nowhere – instead, it had gone inside us."  
>"But the curse -"<br>"The curse is gone, yes, but the energy that was pulled through it remained, like an infection that lingers after the wound has sealed on the surface. She said I was doomed to fits of madness like those Inuyasha had suffered – and if the energy that my grandfather and father suffered from was passed to me, I thought...I thought it would probably pass to any child of mine – and then what would happen?"  
>Miroku gestured at his body.<br>"This...this was Hoshihi's way of saving me from myself. She could not cleanse the youki from me. It was part of me; to purify it, to remove it, would have killed me...and she was fond of me. She didn't want that."  
>He grinned a little, and Kagome flushed. She knew too well what kind of fondness he was likely talking about.<br>"Anyway...she performed a ritual, and instead of sealing that power, she awoke it. Revived it. And I...became this. Not Inu, like her, though I think that's what she was hoping. I'm kujaku now -"  
>Kagome broke into peals of laughter.<br>"Kujaku youkai? You! How perfect!"  
>He grimaced.<br>"Yes, well..."  
>And then it occurred to him that there was something else he needed to tell her.<br>"But you know, Kagome...I'm not the only one who's gone through...ah...great changes, lately."  
>"You...aren't?"<br>She looked confused.  
>"No. Inuyasha...Inuyasha was with me when I went to see Hoshihikari. Actually...actually, he was the reason we went in the first place. I've known her for years; she was the one who made the beads that restrained the Kazaana."<br>"Why would Inuyasha want to see her? He can't have been interested because she's family -"  
>Miroku hesitated.<br>"No...that wasn't it -"  
>Kagome waited patiently, and he knew that she wouldn't let him go until he spoke. The sigh that left his lungs was a heavy one.<br>"He...he wanted to become human, Kagome. After...after the...incident...with you, he hasn't been the same. He – he regrets everything, everything, and...well, I have to say that when he came back Sango and I were pretty hard on him."  
>Miroku winced again.<br>"He...I suggested Hoshihi to him because she is the maker of youkai seals. He was hopeful, so we traveled there together – he was hopeful, and...not without cause."  
>Miroku drew in a deep breath.<br>"He's not really Inuyasha anymore, Kagome. He's – he's human."  
>It was then that she let out the cry that distracted Sesshomaru.<br>"Human? But why – but how!"

A/N: 750 words! And...ha! How's that for soon! It's time for an energy drink quest, but I'll be back, writing more...so there might actually be another chapter today! This chapter is dedicated to Kay and mongoloids...WOO! More soon, my dears! PS: Those of you who get anxious waiting for updates (I know, it happens to me when I'm reading too) keep an eye on my profile; I have links to the other sites I post on, some of which get updated sooner than ffnet occasionally, as well as updates about schedule and so forth.  
>Please Review!<p> 


	315. Chapter 315

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXV

Prompt From Stella: A Word

_Suffocation_

Miroku winced a little at the cry in Kagome's voice. Shrill and pained and dim with confusion, he knew all the things she would be thinking and reached out to hold her shoulder with one hand.

"Kagome, I know you wanted him to be -"

"I wanted him to be himself!"

She shook her head and looked up at him and he knew that expression on her face, stubbornness planted deep in the line of her jaw, in the gleam of her eyes.

"Miroku, Inuyasha's biggest problem has always been that he hates himself, just for being. You know why he wanted the shikon no tama -"

"Yes, and I know why he decided not to use it when he had it. It was because of you, Kagome. Maybe he wants to believe what you've told him for so long – that he's better the way he is. But _he _doesn't believe it and I don't know if he ever will. I thought – when I mentioned – when I told him about Hoshihikari, I thought that it would be a good way to teach him the benefits of the shape he hates so much. You've seen him on his human nights -"

Kagome grinned a little, thinking on her memories, good and bad.

"Yes. He hates being human."

"Yes. I thought being human for a longer period would teach him better than to think he could solve all his problems by becoming something else. The problem -"

Miroku swallowed a little and then shook his head.

"The problem with this is that it appears that the thing Hoshihikari has done to him is – _permanent_. And I don't know if he knows that. I can't believe he would've agreed to it, but then...he...wasn't the same after you left the last time, Kagome. He wasn't the same after we – after Sango and I -"

But he fell silent then. He couldn't talk about Sango; not now, not yet.

Fury blazed up in Kagome's eyes, but Miroku knew she wasn't angry at him. Her whole body stiff, her fists clenched, Kagome turned and looked across the little space that divided them from Hoshihikari and Sesshomaru. The two Inu were silent, staring at each other. Miroku felt waves of _youki_ pulsing from Sesshomaru, sharp and threatening, directed at Hoshihikari. It was odd to sense the rising energy with senses not tied to his holy power, to feel the response of his own _youki. _

_My own youki_.

For a moment he shuddered in contemplation of this truth, bu then Kagome was moving and all his focus was on her, on the _danger _of her. Power shattered the air around her with blanketing force. Miroku felt the pressure of her holy energy as a latent weight and instinct compelled him to reduce the startled cry of his own _youki _to a bare, throbbing pulse in her presence. He was not consciously afraid of her, but the beast within her sensed the presence of an ultimate threat.

He saw that Sesshomaru was aware of Kagome's wild fluctuations of power and he saw the moment Hoshihikari became aware of it. Her face wore an expression of complete surprise and then blank terror, a single moment of fear surpassing all other things. Kagome drew close to her, and closer, and Miroku grinned and then blinked in awe. Kagome's power had grown into a blinding force. She stood glowing with power before Hoshihikari, and the grandmother of her mate fell to her knees and swayed until she was forced down onto all fours.

The weight of Kagome's power was too much for her; even at a distance, even without being its target, it was almost too much for Miroku. Only Sesshomaru stood unaffected. Miroku watched as Kagome took another step forward, and his eyes grew wide as power alone bore Hoshihikari up into the air.

It was a storm of light – no wind, no feeling of atmosphere but the pulse of power. Hoshihikari was held still by it, oppressed by it, suffocated by it. Her fingers scrabbled at her throat; her claws opened bloody scratches but there was nothing there for her to grasp or pull away.

The air had been purified, made holy, too sacred now for her to breathe. The power was a physical presence, such was Kagome's rage, her anguish – and Miroku wasn't surprised to see it, despite the way she had last parted from Inuyasha.

_Too many years, too many good memories - _

Kagome spoke and her voice was like a stranger's, cold and desperate and full of pain.

"You! You – what did you do to Inuyasha! To your own grandson – what did you do!"

* * *

><p>AN: 800 words! Here we are my dears; sorry for the delay again but my laptop died and I hadn't any access to my fanfiction chapters until I was able to get stuff into this new one that arrived yesterday! Soooo I'm going to be working on these chapters, and some Quod Si chapters, and some Bloodlust chapter, and some Bridge of Dreams chapter...because I can! And because it helps to have fics to work on while I'm editing my novel! Woo! The final round of editing, my fwooms! The final round! So! More soon, and

Please Review!


	316. Chapter 316

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXVI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Singe_

There was no chance of Hoshihikari answering Kagome's angry question – not as long as her power held the female suspended and breathless in midair. It wasn't that she couldn't draw in breath, just that the air around her was now as dangerous as the power that charged it. It wouldn't sustain her. Her skin was beginning to smoke, and it was only that which finally brought Sesshomaru forward to lay a hand on Kagome's arm.

He had been quite enjoying his grandmother's discomfiture.

"Mate, she cannot answer you. You must let her go first."

Kagome's first response was bared teeth, a low growl – it shocked him. She was _human_ – what was this?

"If you kill her she will never be able to answer, Kagome."

She turned away from him, back to Hoshihikari. The female's mouth was open in a soundless scream.

"_Kagome -_"

Kagome blinked once, and then again, and let out a long, slow breath. A little at a time, her power retreated and then winked out. Hoshihikari fell to the ground with a nasty _crack_ and lay sucking in breath, her clothes and skin and hair all smoking. Kagome ignored her and turned to Sesshomaru with wide eyes.

"Sorry, I – I don't know why I – _sorry_, Sesshomaru."

He shook his head.

"You need not apologize, but I want to know why you were suddenly so angry. You – said -"

"Yes. I know you hate Inuyasha more now than ever, but I – he -"

She stopped and shook her head and then licked her lips and continued.

"We have history, and way more of it's good than bad. He – what he did to me was terrible but he doesn't deserve what's she done to him!"

She turned back to look at Hoshihikari then and her voice was scathing and full of the rage that had induced her power to leap out of her like wildfire.

"He didn't deserve you taking advantage of him! He didn't deserve to be made _human_. He didn't deserve to have you take away everything that made him _him_ – you – I – I should kill you! You – there's not even a word for what you are! And you made Miroku youkai; he says it was to save him, he says you had to do it, he says that he agreed, but whatever you told him – I bet it was just like what you did to Inuyasha! I bet you lied – I won't believe that it was true! Not coming from you. Miroku youkai, and Inuyasha _human_ – _human_!"

The wrongness of it all was strident in Kagome's voice, and Sesshomaru heard, truly _heard_ what she was saying in that last sentence.

_Inuyasha...is human_? _Inuyasha is human. _

And then, with a sharpness to which he was unaccustomed, the thought reformed itself.

_My brother is human._

And again.

_My brother is human...because of grandmother?_

He knew then a sudden, uncontrollable fury. In comparison Kagome's rage seemed only a shadow, a shallow precursor. His voice escaped him a roar that was deepened by the rage of the Inu. In an instant he was on Hoshihikari, his fingers wrapped around her throat, lifting her off the ground.

"This is the truth? You have done this? You have stripped my father's blood from my brother? How dare you! How dare you take from him the greater part of himself!"

Sesshomaru flung her to the ground in disgust.

"You will come with me _now_. You will explain everything you have done and why you have done it, and if you lie to me I will know and you will not like the consequences."

* * *

><p>AN: Aha. Ha. 625 words...I'm rather on roll, I think! But I owe a certain someone a look at Bloodlust, so more in the soon that is slightly later, and enjoy my dears!

Please Review!


	317. Chapter 317

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXVII

Prompt From Priestess Skye's Bi-Weekly Challenge

_Uniform_

Some days had passed in Edo; days of personal darkness, day spent avoiding purposes and consequences. Inuyasha and Sango stayed inside the house that had been meant for a future that would never be; they visited no one, and the only one who came to them was Kou.

He stayed with them – there was plenty of space. The house had a room in it that had been meant for Miroku and Sango, and a room that had been meant for Inuyasha and Kagome, so they would always feel welcome. It was the room that had been meant for children that Kou stayed in. Sango could barely stand to look at it.

They thought themselves a little lucky; the arrival of Kou's caravan had distracted the village ,and only a few guards knew Sango had returned. None of them had yet thought to tell Kaede, or she would already have been up to see them, wondering why they hadn't come to her.

Inuyasha wanted time to finish healing before he had to confront anyone as he was now – especially Kaede, he knew she would reprove him. He stayed in the room that he should have shared with Kagome, and because he couldn't yet walk without a great deal of pain, he spent most of his time thinking, and regretting, or asleep.

Sango felt nothing at all, and didn't want to have to explain it. She had no desires, no hungers, no happiness, no grief. A lead weight lived in her belly, and for long hours she sat in front of the fire, watching it die down to embers. Sometimes she checked on Inuyasha, pained by the fact that she could cross his room while he was sleeping and he wouldn't notice. She didn't know why that hurt. When Kou was around, she made an effort – for his sake, because it wasn't fair to a kind, generous man to make him suffer the consequences of her own foolishness.

When the day came that Inuyasha could walk again without wincing too badly, and he began to hobble around the house, Sango was forced out of her funk by the need to do things because Inuyasha couldn't, or wouldn't, or didn't know how. He had the strangest questions she'd ever heard, and she was glad that she had taken it upon herself to tell Kou the truth about Inuyasha all those nights ago – or most of it.

Every day Kou made her one omission very clear; she had never told him that she was not Inuyasha's wife. Inuyasha had to have noticed, of course – Kou made some comment to the effect of how lucky he was at least once a day – but he never said a word, never corrected the other man, did nothing but smile and flush and mumble faint acquiescence.

Sango, too, would flush every time, wondering what Inuyasha must be thinking – and then he would ask her something inane about headaches or shoes or why his knuckles cracked, and they would slip back into the old, easy camaraderie.

She hadn't forgiven him for Kagome – not quite – but more and more every day she was learning that this human version of Inuyasha was like him...and yet very different, too. He was not softer, but he was gentler; he did not have less secrets, but he was less mysterious to her, and she could read the deep brown of his human eyes in a way she'd never been able to read the hanyou's glowing gold.

Only one thing was always the same, unchanged from the first day she had met him. He wore the robe of the fire rat, coarse-soft gleaming cloth more valuable than the finest silk. It was his uniform; it held the essence of his being. Sango felt, without being able to think it precisely, that as long as he held onto that robe, as long as he wore it, he was still _Inuyasha_. Even if he was human, he was Inuyasha as long as he wore the robe – would be, even if he took another name.

Sango found herself watching him at odd moments, held captive by the changes in his features or his body or his posture or his eyes, changes she had seen before but only, it seemed, for a moment, compared to the leisure she had now. If he noticed, Inuyasha said nothing – but she wondered sometimes.

Days passed, and drew on to a gleaming afternoon. That afternoon, Miroku stood in awe of the danger of Kagome's power, and Hoshihikari suffered in terrible danger for her life, but Sango and Inuyasha didn't know what Miroku's revelations had precipitated. Inuyasha was distracted by good smells, but trying to apply himself to the mastery of several writing exercises; Kou's idea, payment for the long stay in their home. Sango was cooking, producing the smells that were distracting Inuyasha. Kou liked his food, and Inuyasha was benefiting from this, because Kou insisted that the two of them share in his bounty.

The task of preparing this _bounty _fell in turns to Sango and the woman who usually cooked for Kou, but she didn't mind. Cooking kept her mind off of other things, and she liked the fine food as much as the others, even if it did take work. Kou had already returned from the village, with news that had set them all into a mood of celebration; he was building a house in Edo, because of the people and the atmosphere and legend.

With the three of them already assembled, it was with some surprise that Sango heard a faint voice call out in greeting. She felt a faint shock because the voice was familiar, and turned to Inuyasha with panic on her face.

"Inuyasha it's Kaede!"

Inuyasha's expression was one she was quite familiar with, despite the lack of drooping dog ears – another pang. Another why...

But she would have to save that for later.

* * *

><p>AN: 1000 words! A bit of what's been going on in Edo, don't want to neglect them...and after all, these paths shall all meet in the soon to be! This chapter is posted in honor of the One Millionth alpha view on dokuga! Woo! 1,000,000! It's such a delicious number! To all those who read, and especially all those who review, my great thanks for sticking with me thus far – onward we go!

Please Review!


	318. Chapter 318

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXVIII

Prompt From Lady Midnight's Flower Prompt Challenge

_Orange Mock:Deceit_

Sango pasted a smile on her face and stepped forward to greet the old woman as she came through the door.

"Kaede, it's good to see you -"

But her voice failed her there, because the old woman had already seen Inuyasha, and her single eye was wide and round with confusion.

"Pleased to see me – yes, I'm sure, that's why it's taken me this long to hear of your return; and that...that is Inuyasha. I've seen that face before. I know you – what have you done, idiot boy!"

"I – uh – that is -"

But Kaede waved his words into silence and then folded her arms across her chest, stared at each of them, one at a time.

"Which one of you is going to tell me what sort of foolishness -"

It was at that moment that Kou stepped forward from beyond the _shoji_ that hid the room he'd been staying in; nonplussed, Kaede stared for a moment, now more than confused.

"Kou-san..."

"Kaede-san, good afternoon! I was just on my way back to check on the caravan – we'll be on our way in a few days, but I'll be back, never fear. Never dreamed I'd have such good business here or I'd have come before."

Kou turned and smiled at Sango.

"It was good for both of us that I found you and your husband!"

He bowed to her, and to Inuyasha, and then to Kaede.

"Kaede-san."

Kou passed out through the door Kaede had left open behind her; it closed with a _snick_, and left Sango and Inuyasha alone with Kaede.

One step at a time, Kaede crossed the floor of the main room and then sank down onto a cushion and drew in a deep breath. She looked neither at Sango nor Inuyasha, only stared forward at the fire. She let the breath out slowly, and when she spoke her tone was resigned.

"Tell me everything, then."

Behind her back Sango stared at Inuyasha, and her eyes implored him – begged him – _not _to tell the whole truth. He grinned at her, and then rounded Kaede's seated figure to the other side of the fire.

"What's everything, old woman? What do you want to know?"

Kaede sighed and shook her head.

"Just – just start at the beginning, Inuyasha."

A/N: 400 words! Bit of a shorter one, but it ends well here. One more chapter of Inuyasha and Sango (and Kaede) and then we'll go see what's happening to Hoshihikari...she's not a happy hen at all, oh dear me no...

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	319. Dull Pencil

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXIX

Prompt From DDN: 10/5/2013

_Dull Pencil_

Kaede had asked for the whole truth, but what Inuyasha sketched out for her was only a faded outline, a pencil sketch, the scenes of their journey and their destination illuminated with dull, smoky light.

"We went to see someone Miroku knows. Someone who could make me human, and she did. Miroku stayed with her; we came back. Only, I'm not used to being human for very long, all right? So my feet..."

He lifted them from the floor and Kaede saw the bandages and winced.

"Inuyasha, you foolish boy. What have you done? _What have you done?_"

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! A few short chapters from DDN, and then we'll be picking up some pieces and moving along again. I'm waiting for my book contract to come in the email, so I should use this time to catch up, yes? XD More soon!

Please Review!


	320. Slow Walkers

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXX

Prompt From DDN: 10/5/2013

_Slow Walkers_

As Inuyasha had hoped, the truth about himself, his transformation, his new _nature_- it was enough to distract Kaede from the fact that Miroku wasn't with them. Enough to keep her from looking at Sango, whose eyes bore shadows of inevitable pain.

"I haven't done anything, don't look at me like that!"

Kaede's expression wore raw disappointment.

"I'm like you now, mortal and weak and slow. I'm like you – I'll walk, not run – I'll talk instead of fight. I've learned...my lesson."

The old miko stared at him.

"I hope you know what you're doing, Inuyasha..."

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! And now to write the next chapter - and don't worry, ye fwooms who hate the small chapters, it will be a bit longer than the last pair, because I'm not writing for DDN now

Please Review!


	321. Chapter 321

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra: A Word

_Imperative_

Sesshomaru brought his grandmother to a dark room and tossed her into it, and then turned away without a backward glance. Despite his words, his _demand_ when he had found out what she had done to Inuyasha, he had not been back to question her, had not asked her the questions she had been expecting.

Instead, she was left alone, with ample time for contemplation on her new _circumstances_.

Hoshihikari had not taken Sesshomaru's threat seriously in the moment he made it, but when he acted she no longer had a choice. In the moment between his words, her laughter, and the instant his fingers had closed around her throat, Hoshihikari had recognized that she had made a terrible mistake. Sesshomaru was neither his father nor his mother. There was something of both his parents in him, that could not but be the truth – yet at the same time he was distinctly different from both of them. He didn't react as she expected, and now she suspected that he never would.

Cold, that was what the world thought of him, but nothing could be further than the truth. Sesshomaru was _burning_ inside, Hoshihikari could see that now. Burning, a fire of great passions long constrained. Did the woman know, she wondered? Did the woman, the _miko_, know what a terrible beast it was that loomed beside her?

_But how could she not? And she, too - _

"Monstrous, her power..."

Hoshihikari startled herself with the sound of her own voice after so much silence. She felt again the choking sweetness, the taste of air that she inhaled, yet could not gain life from – _sweetness_. Even thinking about it, she felt her breath begin to quicken, put her hands to her throat as if she could feel the pressure there.

_Monstrous. So perhaps it is fitting, that she is with him, my grandson..._

She smiled to herself. Whether he willed it or no, he would be part of her _great plan. _Even if he killed her here, he would have pups with power enough to rule the world – holy power and the Inu's power both.

Hoshihikari settled back against the lone cushion the room around her provided and wondered if Miroku would come for her, or try to protect her.

_Probably not. He probably thinks this is a just punishment, even if he feels a personal obligation to my safety. Because he is my mate..._

She closed her eyes, and then opened them again as a slash of light burned through them. Such brightness! She turned her face aside and looked through the shadowing fingers of her splayed hand, and then saw that it was only the light of a single candle. It reflected back at her from eyes the color of the yellow flame.

"Sesshomaru! So, have you come to your senses?"

"Silence. Speak no words, except to answer the questions that will be asked of you."

"You dare -"

"_Dare_? It is you who have _dared_ – dared much. _Too much_. Now you will answer for everything you have done. Not only I have questions for you, grandmother. My mate and _your _mate have things they wish to know."

He reached out and grasped hold of her wrist. She jerked herself free of his grip and stood slowly, smoothed her hair and robes and kept her eyes shielded from the light of the candle.

"Very well. I am ready."

He stared at her for a long moment, and she saw that fire burning in his gaze again – _wrath_. She wondered why he was so angry. Just because of Inuyasha? Just because of the brother he had never cared for, the brother he had many times tried to kill?

_I will find out soon enough, I suppose._

Sesshomaru led her down the hallway, and she followed him without further words.

* * *

><p>AN: 650 words! A bit late, but I was awake for too long again and then slept for 15 hours. Oops? At any rate, more soon and

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	322. Chapter 322

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXII

Prompt From DDN 2/1/14

_Charge_

From the day of his brother's birth until now, Sesshomaru had never had a soft feeling for Inuyasha. He hated the sight of him, the scent of him, the fact of his existence and that he continued to exist, a stinging reminder of the past. If there was anyone else he hated more, it was the woman who had birthed him.

_Izayoi_.

Her name was acid on his tongue.

He had suffered even as he did his best to keep his feelings in check. Inuyasha had remained alive...but only as a burden, the rejected charge of the father they shared.

* * *

><p>AN: 100 words! What's that – the sound of people crying out in shock because they thought I was dead? Bwahaha never fear! I have been stolen by novel writing, and trying to get book two of my series in order, but I shall never die! And so – a chapter, with several more that are completed on the way momentarily, and perhaps another after that if Hoshihi cooperates...

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	323. Chapter 323

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXIII

Prompt From DDN 2/1/14

_Kick_

Hoshihikari's actions had changed everything – and Sesshomaru didn't understand why. Inuyasha _was _a burden. Empty of their father's blood, of youkai influence, didn't he cease to be one?

Yet there was the root of the problem; could he confront it? Did he dare not to? He narrowed his eyes and the thought made up his mind for him. He would not be afraid, he was afraid of _nothing_.

Nothing!

So what was the truth? It hit him sudden and hard, like a kick to the stomach.

"I have...no brother now."

The grip he had on his grandmother's arm grew tighter.

#

A/N: 100 more words...tada! And now another, slightly longer chapter, in which doom begins. Bwaha.

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	324. Chapter 324

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXIV

Prompt From DDN 2/1/14

_Defeat_

If Hoshihikari entertained a single thought of escape or victory, the group that confronted her at the end of the hallway Sesshomaru had dragged her down destroyed it. The woman was waiting for her, eyes blazing as if they had never been pulled apart – and Miroku, too, a detached expression on his face, a sense of...waiting in his aura. Yet those were the inquisitors she had expected – more troubling was the line of faces arrayed behind those two.

Sesshomaru's councilor's – she knew them by name only. Shizuka, watching now very carefully...brothers, Ryoichiro, Kenichiro – Musashi, with open anger on his face, Yoshio turned away from her – the little one, Akihito. The females...they were some surprise to her. She had _heard_ the words of her grandson's mate, when the woman had summoned these few to sit beside her at the celebration of her mating. There was _nothing_ between her and any of these – and still, for the sake of a human woman they defied her?

_Even the Silk Mistress. Even Orochi's daughters!_

Her thoughts were unraveling swiftly. Here was an audience before which her secrets could do far more harm than good – did Sesshomaru not know that? Did he possess no foresight at all? Hoshihikari remembered the truth that Miroku had wrung out of her, the depth of his power – over her, and within himself, powers he had yet to test fully, powers of which she did not know. _And Sesshomaru, who promises pain if nothing else. If he unleashes her -_

She knew now that all the stories she had heard about the death that had taken her daughter were true. In a contest of power, perhaps not even Sesshomaru could rival his mate – his power might be endless waves buffeting her shore, but the miko stood with all the world at her back. _Yet it does not matter. No wedge will work its way between them – she will not allow it, and he...he would tear it to pieces. _

In the array of powers assembled before her, Hoshihikari saw that she had sown the seeds of her own defeat seeking the perfect power that was to be her great accomplishment, her gift to the world. Sesshomaru was too strong – too strong to be controlled, to be compelled...to be constrained. _But still not strong enough_.

Would he believe her? Was it time to share the old secrets, the visions of the ancient world? Before all these others, no less...

_But no. Perhaps that is best. _

She stood still, regal aura renewed in her resolve, and lifted her eyes to meet the eyes of her grandson.

"Well, Sesshomaru? Did you not have questions for me?"

His face did not change, but she saw the strain in the line of his jaw that told her he was not unaffected by her mien.

"Yes, _grandmother_. Only three – one for each of us. For now. What is it you have done to Inuyasha – the full truth of it, no evasion, no half-truth. What is it you have done to your new _mate_? The same condition applies. And finally, you will tell me in exact and explicit detail every step, every nuance, every _particular _of whatever _experiment_ you have been performing on my bloodline."

"_Your _bloodline -"

Hoshihikari was visibly affronted, despite her circumstances, but Sesshomaru would take _nothing_ from her. The air grew thick as oil, power that slapped against everyone in the room. Dense, concentrated _youki_ hung around Hoshihikari, warning, waiting for any provocation, ready to strike.

"I. Am. _Alpha_. It is _my _bloodline."

Darker, that power. _Heavier_.

"Answer the questions! You are out of time."

* * *

><p>AN: One more left to upload, and then the writing begins again!

Please Review!


	325. Chapter 325

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXV

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_An Ounce of Prevention_

_I am __**Alpha**__. _Sesshomaru said the words in the darkest voice Kagome had ever heard him use. The sound gave her a visceral twinge. _It is __**my**__ bloodline_, he said, and she lay her hand across her belly, no life showing yet but the pulse of it strong to her internal senses.

Was it the strength of Sesshomaru's power, the raw, brute force of it? Was it the poisonous odor, brittle flower aroma cracking the air wide open? Kagome didn't know, but watched fascinated as _something_ about Sesshomaru's display shattered his grandmother's facade.

A glow of warmth strengthened her purpose, her convictions. Her sons and daughters were of that bloodline, were his - were claimed, even as she was claimed, by his declaration. And her thoughts darkened with the eruption of another truth into her thoughts. _Inuyasha. _

Her eyes focused on Hoshihikari. The faintest flame of power whispered into life about her skin – orchid, lavender, cerise. Kagome took a step forward and felt no small satisfaction when Hoshihikari flinched away from her approach.

"My question first, Sesshomaru."

She fixed his grandmother with her stare, gave slack to the thrum of her power's rising motion.

"Tell me what you did to Inuyasha. Tell me how we can free him, make him back to the way he was -"

"None of you can do that – not even you, with all your power."

Tightness gathered in Kagome's throat, and she shook her head.

"I refuse to believe that. Anything can be undone -"

"Not this. Only the boy himself could break the seal, undo the spell...but I do not think he will. He was broken when he came to me, and though changed he was whole when he left. Pleased with himself – happy."

Kagome startled herself with her own voice, low and furious.

"You had no right. No right!"

But Hoshihikari stood tall, unapologetic if not unafraid.

"I had the only right! The right of the one who can – and so must. The blood that boy bears is too strong, too powerful. He came to me without even the seal of his father's soul!"

A gasp escaped Kagome's lips before she could contain it; her hands flew to cover her mouth. Hoshihikari narrowed her eyes, smiled – no happiness, only cruelty.

"You did not think of it, did you? All that danger -"

And when Kagome looked at her startled, the smile only widened.

"Oh yes. I have heard the stories – the rage, the power, the unleashed fury of a Daiyoukai with no consciousness as restraint. He would destroy the world, unless he died first – and who would kill him? Would you? _Could _you?"

She paused, and there came a silence so profound it swallowed even the small noises – sigh of breath...rustling...heartbeat.

"I did only what needed to be done. What no one else would do – could do. But you are not listening, though I have saved him."

A/N: 500 words! And the answers begin...saved him, she says! Saved him...now I wonder what she means by that? :cackles: WE SHALL SEE...shortly, because as I am ahead of schedule on book two of my series, I am currently at work on the next chapter of this! So, keep an eye out in the extremely soon, and...

Please Review!


	326. Chapter 326

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXVI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_A Pound of Cure_

A lightning flash of disbelief crashed across Kagome's face. Was Hoshihikari delusional?

"Saved him!"

"_You are not listening_! You can do nothing – nor I, nor Sesshomaru – no one can do anything for Inuyasha but for Inuyasha himself. If _he_ chooses, he may break the bond of power – with need, with real desire, with acceptance of the part of himself he seeks to reclaim."

For the second time a startling silence flowed over the room. Only Miroku was moving, his fingers twitching at his sides. Terrible presentiments were alive within him. This was not the answer he had expected her to give – it was not the answer she had first given him.

"_Mendorichibi_. You are lying to us now, or you lied to me once. Care to tell me which it is?"

Kagome cast him a glance out of the corner of her eye, caught the edge of his gaze and the slightest shake of his head. She relaxed. She could trust Miroku – and he would make a better inquisitor than she would. But..._mendorichibi?_ She fought back laughter and made a note to ask him later how _that_ had come about.

Yet it was Hoshihikari's answer that she wanted most, and like before when it came it was not was she was expecting – nor Miroku, from the look on his face.

"You are wrong to think that I lie, Miroku. I told you exactly the truth, but like now, you did not understand. Do you remember what I said to you? Listen again, and listen carefully. For my own sake I will make it clear. The hanyou Inuyasha is my own blood – I would not harm him, nor seal away forever the power of the beast within him. Yet that beast, half formed as it is and still so powerful...it is a danger to everything. He is safe, now – the beat of his blood restrained. If the day comes that he meets the conditions of the spell, and truly desiring to become him_self_ seeks to set the Inu free -"

She smiled, and though she was Inu Kagome thought it a cat's smile of satisfaction.

"If that happens, then he will receive a marvelous gift. His own power, and the consciousness to use it as he chooses, rather than let hm use it...a merging, a melding of the separate halves of his soul. There has always been a seed of what is human in Inuyasha's youkai self. He may not remember, but long ago I met him – met him twice. I saw it then, and I have been waiting...and now the time is come for the opposite to be true."

Hoshihikari took a step toward Kagome.

"Something youkai must be born in his human nature. Like the _yin_ and _yang_ that is the sky and the sea, he must come to terms, and be whole – or for all our sake, he must remain as he is forever."

Kagome's fists, white-knuckled, relaxed. Before she could second guess herself, she took three steps forward and flung her arms around Hoshihikari, rejected former judgment, if even for a moment, to make clear her gratitude.

"_Thank you_. Thank you – I understand now. He's always been so afraid -"

Delicately, Hoshihikari patted Kagome's head and waited for her to withdraw the incursion of her arms.

"With reason. But now, maybe for the first time, his fate is in his own hands."

Kagome nodded once, then stepped back.

Hoshihikari felt burgeoning presence at her back, and knew it for Sesshomaru.

"We are not done yet, grandmother. Do not feel _better_ – Kagome is a forgiving person, and I am not."

* * *

><p>AN: 600 words! Bwahahahaha so...not as evil as we thought, hmm? And yes, if you go back to the chapters in which Miroku discussed these things with Hoshihi, there IS complete truth in her statements...just like in all the rest of what she's said. :cackles: Once again, work on book 2 recommences, and I shall see you all in a few days!

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	327. Chapter 327

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXVII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_Torrential_

It was Miroku who stepped forward, came close enough to touch Hoshihikari but did not.

"It's time for all the answers you've been holding back, _mendorichibi_."

There was a flash in her eyes he didn't like – worry, fear, fatalism. From the moment she had first made her intentions clear to him he had suspected…_what? That she was holding back…but now…_

"Was anything you told me true at all?"

"Miroku! You have no reason to distrust me –"

"I have every reason! The only reason, really. You are youkai and I was mortal. You wanted me to be like you – you want…a child."

Her gasp was all the confirmation he needed, and he smiled, shook his head.

"Did you think I hadn't noticed? The look on your face – how hungry you are, but not for me…"

His gaze held her still, piercing, magnetic.

"So I want the truth. Why make me this? Why change me into something like you? Why do you want a son or daughter born from my seed?"

Hoshihikari turned her gaze away from him, stared at Sesshomaru with equal parts resentment and satisfaction.

"Because of him. Because of my grandson, who would shut me away from the powers I have been shepherding for two thousand years – more!"

Miroku ground his teeth together, reached out with one hand and turned her chin so that she had no choice but to look him in the face.

"That's not an answer."

"Isn't it? _Isn't it_?"

Hoshihikari jerked her face back out of his hand and took two steps back, encompassed all those standing in the room with a sharp glare.

"For two thousand years I have sought power with one purpose. To hold back the darkness of the future – to create, through the manipulation of the resource available to me, some being of power great enough to save us all, all youkai, all spirits, all powers."

Sesshomaru took one step toward her, stopped.

"Resource – you mean the bloodline of the Inu. The strength of the beast. But the future –"

His gaze darted toward Kagome and away.

"The future takes care of itself."

Straight-backed, fear crawling across her face, Hoshihikari shook her head.

"No. _No._ Not for us. The future – for youkai the future ends in darkness. Swallowed by shadow, by night – no more, the endless forever brought to an end. A day of death, a finish to everything immortal – _it comes_."

There was laughter – from the females Kagome had brought with her, from a few of Sesshomaru's council – but not from Sesshomaru, and not from Kagome.

Sesshomaru's attention was on his mate – how wide her eyes had grown, how her fingers trembled – the speed of her heartbeat, staccato thudding bright in his ears. He didn't understand what it was that had caused such a reaction. Surely everything Hoshihikari said was nonsense – the future was unknown, not something of which she could speak…

And then a torrent of ice replaced the blood in his veins. He was beside Kagome in an instant, clutching her trembling hands, forcing himself to restrain the urge to tighten his grip – he would break her fingers if he wasn't perfectly, exquisitely careful.

"Kagome. Kagome tell me – meaningless, all her words. Your future, tell me…"

But his words fell down, down, down into silence. She was shaking her head, saying nothing, meeting no eyes – just shaking her head, over and over again.

#

A/N: Woo! A new chapter, look at that! Things are happening, and events will soon be set in motion the likes of which the world has never seen…bwahaha! I have just finished book two of my Eight Kingdoms series, and having sent it off to the editor I find myself with a few days free, so expect some more chapters! Also, those who are interested, my debut novel (and the first book of the Eight Kingdoms series) _Dark Side of the Sun_ is going on pre-order TOMORROW! WOO! So if you'd like to support my words, visit totally bound at their website and pick up a copy! Many thanks to all those who read, and as always

Please Review!


	328. Chapter 328

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXVIII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_Temporal_

"You must tell me. You must tell me it means nothing. Kagome…"

"I can't."

Kagome turned her face to look at Sesshomaru, hoped he could see in her face all the things she didn't want to say. _But I do have to say them. I do. Who else could?_

"She's…telling the truth, Sesshomaru. I don't know how she knows it, but…the future…"

Again, she shook her head.

"The future I came from is a world of men. The future I came from…"

She took a deep breath.

"The future I came from is one without youkai in it. Between now and five hundred years from now…"

She shrugged faintly, turned her gaze away from the remorseless golden glare of Sesshomaru's eyes.

"I don't know what's going to happen, but something does. Something _must_. If you're all in hiding, if you've all…if you've all died…I don't know. My grandfather made me read bunches of old scrolls, told me all the important old stories – he never mentioned why the magic was gone from the world, or what had happened to all the mythical beasts he liked to talk about. She's right, Sesshomaru."

She turned and linked her gaze to Hoshihikari's surprised eyes.

"I don't know how, but your grandmother is right. Still…"

Kagome's brow grew tight, her eyes narrow.

"That's no excuse to run around manipulating your own family – your own son and daughter! And your grandson…and now Miroku? You made him youkai just because you were afraid, just because you wanted a powerful child? That's…that's _sick_."

She spat the word at Hoshihikari, then turned back to Miroku.

"I'm sorry, Miroku, I know she's your mate – and I know you made your own choices, but –"

"No. You haven't said anything I disagree with – and I _still_ want to know the thing I'm not being told."

Eyes that gleamed for an instant with every color in the world held Hoshihikari still.

"If it was because you wanted a child that you made me…_this_, then there was no danger, was there? There was no beast inside me until you forged one – nothing but the energy."

Miroku waited for an answer, but Hoshihikari said nothing.

"That was it, wasn't it? You played me like a fool, told me just enough to make me terrified – I should have known. I should have known…I _did_ know. And for this…for this, I gave up all hope of life as an honest man! For this, I gave up Sango – for _you_!"

The room grew full of color – scent – _brightness_. Kagome stepped close to him; the others drew back.

"Miroku – Miroku, come on. She's not worth it…and there's nothing to be done about it now. We'll find a way to punish her –"

Miroku relaxed, but only a little. She felt the tension leaving his muscles under her hand, but his glare was _fixed_ on Hoshihikari, and she couldn't blame him. Kagome, too, turned and stared at the Inu female, and finally – _finally_ – she began to speak.

"What should I say? You are the perfect partner for me, Miroku, and you had the power I needed…more than I needed. _Youki_ enough for three beasts was trapped beneath your skin; you have your grandfather's holy powers, or even more, and in these lesser times…"

She shrugged, an elegant commentary on her own actions.

"I can't apologize. I'm not sorry. In time you will forgive me – you'll grow to learn what you've gained."

Miroku laughed, a bitter sound.

"Forgive you? I can't do anything else but kill you, and I'm not such a _beast_ as that. Not yet."

#

A/N: It's…another chapter! Ha! My excitement is spending itself in words, how lucky for you my dears! So Hoshihikari remains a _little_ bit evil, because I couldn't do otherwise – she wouldn't let me XD Coming Soon: The passage of time – Sango & Inuyasha – and a journey to Edo!

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	329. Chapter 329

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXIX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_Arrangements_

Quiet descended over the room as Miroku moved away from Hoshihikari and stood alone in one corner, his back to all the others in the room. Respectfully, even Kagome didn't intrude – not now. There would be time for comfort, but for now there was only the irrefutable cost, whose truth who could not be disputed. All that he was would fade in time, and whatever would take its place would not be the same.

There was an unsteady shuffling of feet among the assembled councilors and females, all of them uncertain why they had been summoned to witness this…airing of family secrets. Sesshomaru was stiff as an iron rod, his gaze passing between his mate, his grandmother, and the human she had _changed _for her own purposes. _ A child_. A child of great powers, a child with whom she would change the world…mark the future…

_The future._

_A child._

His wandering stare focused on Kagome's trembling fingers, the way they lay over her belly – did she have the thoughts he had? Did she wonder what plots had been laid in the bloodline of their sons and daughters, what pains would come to them because of that? Did she see in her mind's eye the future from which she had come, empty of powers, empty of youkai...

Sesshomaru turned to his grandmother.

"Tell me what you have done. Tell me how you know what it is that's coming."

"_Done_? Listen to me, Sesshomaru. When I was young, and in the first days of learning and testing my powers, I found that not only space could be shaped by magic, but time as well. I saw many things in those days, using that power. The distant past attracted me, the days of the ancient legends – what battles I have seen, you, even you, warrior that you are, could not imagine. It is true, everything they say. Our ancestors strove with the very gods, power matched against power – enough to blot out the sun, white-light the night. But…eventually, I grew bored with visions of things that had been.

"I looked out across the chasms of the past, and everything I saw, in the end, was meaningless because it had already come to pass. Then…then, I decided to look forward. To seek ahead. I wanted to know what greatness would come to my future, my children, their children. I could see it, all of it – and just like I could see it, I could see the end of it. The end of _us_."

She whipped around and faced Kagome.

"You say you come from that future? Maybe so – you were in no vision of mine! All I know is that I have sought, through two generations, two thousand years, to create a youkai powerful enough to fend out whatever threat is coming. To divert the flow of the future with a single stone placed in the past. You ask what I have done, Sesshomaru?"

She looked at him from the corners of her eyes.

"I ensured your birth into this world – I warned your father of your coming. I would have given your children the training you did not receive; I would have given them…everything. I could have hidden their blood from their word and let them learn the mastery of their holy powers from the greatest among men – but you say to me, do not interfere. I am Alpha. My bloodline. You say these things to me, when I –"

"_You are wrong_."

Soft, sibilant, two voices spoke in unison and interrupted Hoshihikari's tirade. All the eyes in the room turned toward the two who had spoken – Suzu and Shiori, Orochi's daughters, chosen by Kagome…and it was Kagome who stepped forward, to question them.

"Do you…have something to say?"

"_She is wrong. She has always been wrong_. _She saw only the first passage over this ground. She saw not you who are though you have not always been. Mother of One Thousand Generations."_

"….Suzu-san? Shiori-san I don't…understand."

"_Not yet. Not now._"

Suzu alone turned to Sesshomaru, and fixed him with a sightless gaze.

"You had made arrangements, you had made plans – cast aside nothing now, but follow through where you may. Aren't there new answers to take advantage of? Aren't there new ways?"

Sesshomaru blinked, momentarily confused. Then he remembered.

_Kagome. I was going to send Kagome to her village – _

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><p>AN: Tada! Another chapter! Three days until Nano, oh joy, oh rapture! The time of infinite writing begins April 1st, but until then I will try to get out a many of these as I can!

Please Review!


	330. Chapter 330

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXX

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_Easy Way Out_

Too much information had been revealed by Hoshihikari for simple contemplation to break open the full truth. Sesshomaru needed time to think, and so too would those he hoped would advise him – in time. For now, Sesshomaru dismissed all those he had summoned, even Kagome's females – even his grandmother – and still despite his order one person remained.

Sesshomaru had known he would.

_Miroku. The priest. And yet no longer –_

But the thought wouldn't complete itself, because despite the man's changed nature there was still a tide of sacred powers contained within his altered flesh. In low voices, Miroku and Kagome began to speak together, hiding nothing from him but perhaps enough from those who would be straining their ears in this direction from outside.

"_You've got a story to tell me, Miroku –"_

"_I know."_

"_More than what you just…"_

"_I know, Kagome. I know."_

"_Is…is Inuyasha all right?"_

Sesshomaru gritted his teeth, and was surprised by Miroku's sigh – exasperated, he seemed, but perhaps that was a good thing.

"_Kagome are you still worrying about him? He doesn't deserve it, you know. Not from you. Not until he learns the whole truth of what he did wrong. If you go back to him like you usually do –"_

"_I can't do that now. I wouldn't, even if…but Miroku, I can't help worrying about him. Even if there's nothing else, he was still my friend-"_

"_And how do you think he will see it, Kagome? If you really want my advice, you'll leave Inuyasha alone for the time being. Let him come to his own conclusions."_

Yes – this was a good thing. More than anything else Sesshomaru's thoughts lingered on the words of Orochi's twin daughters, those two with their affinity for prophecy, for truth…what had they meant? Why had they suggested…how had they known? But it didn't matter. He would be a fool to ignore such advice, and it was obvious to him that the name of the _path_ they suggested was _Miroku_.

Someone he could trust to guard Kagome and not deride or defile her. Someone who _she_ would trust. Someone with the strength to do the job, someone who would agree – he hoped – without question.

"Miroku."

The sound of his voice killed their conversation like a shot to the heart. Kagome grew quiet, still, worry leaking from her in unsubtle waves, and he drew close to her at once, lay his hands on her shoulders, tried to reassure her just by his presence – and then he realized what he was doing, and almost stepped back. He had reacted as if this Miroku were any stranger-youkai, someone who might present a threat at the first sign of weakness. _Not this one_.

"Is there something…"

"Miroku, friend of my Kagome, I dismissed my grandmother before she could answer your question fully. I apologize – but I have a request to make of you. It cannot wait."

Miroku's eyes widened, but only a little.

"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama? I am of course willing to help you -"

"You must be willing to aid Kagome, not I. Before you arrived here, Kagome was meant to leave – to return to the village of Edo and visit with friends there. She is in a certain condition. Her presence here is dangerous until some _housecleaning_ has been done."

A little at a time, Miroku's eyes turned from Sesshomaru to Kagome, until he was staring straight at her, at the way she stood now, her hands cupped across her belly, warmth rising in her cheeks, flushing her throat – _true. It was true_.

Immediately, Miroku stood straighter. He sent one penetrating stare Kagome's way, a stare that said _you have a story, too_ – then his attention was all for Sesshomaru as he bowed deeply.

"Sesshomaru-sama. I am honored. I will protect Kagome with my life."

Sesshomaru only stared at him, the bright of his eyes speaking all that he would not say in words with Kagome standing before him.

_You had better._

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><p>AN: A chapter, a chapter! I have too many books writing and too many books editing and my soul is somewhere bouncing around and my brain fell out my ear and so. I am slow. Very slow. Of updates. BUT. Here is one, and in the next few days there should be another, because I have already wrote the first paragraph of it! Check Amazon for my debut novel, Dark Side of the Sun, if you want to see why I've been such a fwoom about posting, and of course, if you've got a moment…

Please Review!


	331. Chapter 331

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXXI

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_Caught Up_

Kagome watched out the windows of the carriage as the dragons that drew it pulled away; below her, the island-palace shrank quickly into a dark spot on a cobalt sea, and she saw for herself the waves turn into pouting lips, just as Izayoi's pillow book had described. She touched the square shape of it, tucked into her obi, and took strength from the reminder.

_Housecleaning, Sesshomaru said. I'll be back – he'll come for me – he wants me, so he'll keep me. He won't let go. _

There had been no touching goodbye, no heartfelt confession. She could barely bring herself to contemplate her own feelings, especially now, going back to Edo, and Sesshomaru…was Sesshomaru. He had touched her lips, her belly. He had watched her go.

"You're going to miss him. I have to say, I'm surprised. I thought you would be glad to be going home."

Kagome turned to look at Miroku, sitting across from her, and studied the shining additions to his face. So much color… But she shook her head, and leaned back into her seat.

"Going _home_? No, Miroku. I'm not going home, I'm leaving home behind. And I _will_ miss him – am I bad, Miroku? Am I –"

"_Don't ask me that_. Not you."

The words were harsher than any she'd ever heard from him, and his face was strange.

"Miroku?"

"I'm sorry, Kagome." But his smile was wan. "It's just that you are the one…you have always been the one who was _right_. Who does the _correct_ thing. If _you_ are bad, then there's no hope for the rest of us."

He laughed a little, but she sensed no humor in the sound. She hesitated for a moment before she asked the question that was foremost on her mind – the question she thought had the most bearing on his bitterness.

"You never did say…what it was that happened between you and Sango. What did you do, Miroku?"

He looked down, then out the window away from her. She thought he wasn't going to answer, but words came from him in a stranger's voice, dim and mechanical.

"I brought Sango and Inuyasha to Hoshihikari. He wanted to be human – it was my fault, I gave him the idea…I didn't know what she would turn it into. Not that it matters now, I suppose. And Sango…Sango…"

He paused for a long time, then shrugged.

"Sango found me with Hoshihi. I tried to send her away when she came to me – I did try. But she was my first lover, and the sake…no, that's not an excuse. It's just that there were only so many times I could say no. I still…and I wasn't…I'm not a good man, Kagome." And he frowned deeply, then shrugged again. "I wasn't good, and now I'm not even a man. Maybe it's my punishment."

Kagome winced at the sound of his voice, so heavy on that last word. "Punishment? Miroku…"

"Sango saw us – saw me – saw me inside another woman! She'd always been so afraid of it and I knew that and she…" He took an angry breath and the carriage was full of the feeling of rustling wings, ruffled feathers. "She _saw_. I did that to her – I _should _be punished."

Kagome was silent, contemplating. Part of her couldn't deny his meaning; Sango was a broken woman, and she had known more than enough fear. That pain – the pain Miroku had caused her – did she really need that too?

_But punishment doesn't help her. It doesn't help anyone._

"I think you need to apologize, even if she doesn't want to hear it. Does she know what's happened to you, since…then?"

Miroku shook his head.

"She left. With Inuyasha. I was going to follow them – I don't know what I would've said but it seemed like the right thing to do, and then Hoshihi stopped me and…I don't know, Kagome. I don't know."

She stared at him for a while in silence, then reached out and touched the back of his hand.

"Miroku, you aren't…you weren't a bad man, Miroku. It wasn't right, what you did. But you know, that's only one thing. You've done a lot of good, too."

He laughed – a faint sound, hollow. Then he gestured at the window and closed his eyes.

"We'll see. We're almost to Edo, Kagome."

She pressed herself back into her seat again, dared herself to look out the window and see how close they were, but couldn't. She didn't know if she was ready for the confrontations that were before her now, but she had no choice.

_This is who I am now. This is who I have to be – who I want to be._

The carriage rocked as it landed.

She took a breath.

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><p>AN: AND I AM NOT DEAD. Look at that! I wrote books, you see – bunches! But here are these words, and more soon, and…woo!

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	332. Chapter 332

Drabble Collection Alpha

CCCXXXII

Prompt From Mr. Lyra

_Inner Darkness_

She came back to them, and it was as if nothing had changed. In her, anyway – from the distance he allowed himself, Inuyasha saw all too well the changes in everyone else. Sango's increased stillness, even in the face of Kagome's laughter…Kaede's frown, the way it was hidden behind her smile. And Miroku – Miroku was the greatest surprise of all.

Until he heard the man's name, until the morning he watched that youkai speaking with Sango, then saw her flee into the wood in tears, Inuyasha didn't have the slightest suspicion of who he was. _Miroku. _How it was possible, Inuyasha didn't understand, but from the looks of things both Kagome and Sango accepted it to be true.

When he approached the man himself, caught him all but unawares at the edge of the wood, he saw it for himself.

"Inuyasha! That is – you are Inuyasha…aren't you…yes." In the sound of that final _yes_ Inuyasha heard the confirmation he had once been able to make himself – knowing a person by sight and scent and power. He heard Miroku's voice, little changed despite his physical appearance, and that change a certain lightness, an elegance that was only in youkai voices.

"Yeah, I'm Inuyasha, but if I hadn't thought it already…how the hell are _you_ Miroku?"

Miroku only shrugged. "Hoshihi?" And then he stopped, and the strangest expression Inuyasha had ever seen on his friends face flitted across it and was gone. "She's your grandmother, you know. I didn't – before she _changed_ me, before she mated me – but she gave herself away at last."

With one sentence Miroku nearly broke Inuyasha's brain. _Grandmother? Changed him – my grandmother. Hoshihi…Hoshihikari? The one who – the one who made me human. _In his mind's eye he saw her as he had first seen her, golden eyes shining in the black night, hair swinging like a curtain of moonlight behind her.

_My father. She reminded me…of my father. That was why I said – _

"Damn it, Miroku! How could you not know? And now I _owe_ her. And if she's my grandmother…"

"Yes, she's your brother's grandmother too. But they don't get along, you can be sure of that…it's part of why I'm here, now."

"Part of why –"

His head was spinning still – _Mate he said. Miroku is my grandmother's mate. _In some earlier moment he might have made a disbelieving joke, but there was no way out of the truth. And then –

"Yes, Sesshomaru sent me with Kagome to protect her. I don't think he trusts humans at all, but for now there's elements in his own fortress he trusts less. And I have some element of control over Hoshihi, if _she_ decides to cause trouble…but I don't think she will."

And he shrugged, appeared to hesitate before he shrugged again and continued speaking. "She's interested in the bloodline of the Inu, you see. She's interested in power, in preparing for the future…so I don't think she'd hurt Kagome. Not now. Now while she's pregnant."

For an instant, time stopped for Inuyasha.

_Pregnant? _

_Kagome, _

_My_

_Kagome,_

_Pregnant? _

And in an instant it came true to him as it hadn't before. _Not mine. Never mine, for a moment mine, only once mine and never again._ He knew it, because even if the child was his –

Tightness filled his throat against which he no longer had any resistance.

Even if the child was his, she would never be with him. He might never know he was a father, and even if she knew, and told him, he certainly wouldn't be able to raise a child with her.

At the same moment there was a call from the village below the wood – _Miroku? Miroku!_ – in Kagome's voice. Inuyasha took a gulping breath and backed into the tree-line, shaking his head.

"Miroku I can't – I don't – don't tell her I was here, don't tell her anything, don't say – it's just – it's just better if she doesn't talk to me at all, that's better, isn't it?"

He was babbling and knew it, but Miroku only nodded sadly and began to walk away.

For a moment Inuyasha watched him go, the light glinting strangely on the indigo in his hair. Then he turned away into the forest brushing at his eyes with his sleeves. _Sango went this way, earlier. She didn't come back – I should find her. Sango knows – I bet Sango knows everything. She'll tell me what to do, even if she kills me – even if that's the only answer, she'll know. She'll tell me. _

But Sango had already been found by the time he even came close to her, and he backed away from the trees, horrified.

_Kagome – not Kagome. Not now. _

How could he ever even look at her again? He was suspicious – after all, he'd had only one night with her. Suspicious, but he had no proof that the child was his brother's child and not his own.

_I could tell, if I was still hanyou I could tell, maybe – _

But he wasn't, and he couldn't, and because of that he couldn't get rid of a sense of guilt, a feeling of obligation, even as he turned away. If it was his child – then didn't this doubt, this neglect, make him a terrible father?

And if Kagome's child was not his, was his...his _brother's_ – the thought made his heart burn, his eyes burn, there was still responsibility there. He had been the one to take Kagome, to mate her; he had opened the door that had led her to his brother.

An Alpha's strength gave Sesshomaru dominance, the preeminent position in the pack, but Inuyasha knew well his brother's feelings about him – about half-breeds. Even if he came back and recognized the child for his own, he would never acknowledge it, would never claim it. Kagome's baby would be without pack, without family except for his mother.

_Like I was_.

Horrified as he was at the thought, Inuyasha still didn't know if he could overcome his anger; if he could prevent his hate from turning to face this new interloper, child who would be a symbol of another's claim over his Kagome…

So he stayed away, and watched from a distance, and never once left the house he still shared with Sango when the sound of her voice was near.

* * *

><p>AN: Behold! Another chapter! Still not dead! Woooooo! Avoiding confrontations on all sides here – and yes, we will see what Miroku said to Sango, and what Sango is now saying to _Kagome_, in the next chapter!

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